To Grandmother's House We Go
by ValiantOne1
Summary: From the author who brought you "Winter Cabin Ski Trip" brings a NEW ADVENTURE... ahem. Takuya and the gang are at it again on this adventure to JP's Grandmother's house. You'll have to read to understand why. Don't ask...
1. Chapter 1

And so the wait is over! It's the moment you all have been waiting for!

[_Crowd Cheers_]

Here's the Oneshot-threeplot I was talking about. Basically this story is a plot with all six of the main characters of the Frontier Season of Digimon, while two of each of them team up for a separate adventure (this is going to be hard). That means none of my OCs for once. Just pure original work that's not my own for the taking. So let me remind you, I do not own the Digimon franchise in any way, shape, or form.

[OC's burst threw the door with outrageous demanding looks]

**Robby:** What do you mean no OC's?!

**Jack:** Yeah?

[_I turn around in my chairman seat in a dramatic fashion_]

**Me:** Sorry guys… its just… business.

**Rose:** This is wrong and you know it!

**Bobby:** I want my screen time! We're going on strike!

**Jack:** [_Jabs finger in my direction_] this calls for a sit in and we're not going anywhere until you put us in the story!

[_They sit down stubbornly while time passes_]

**Me: **Well I'm sorry that things had to get to this level, but… [_presses a button and a smoke bomb with knock-out gas falls from the ceiling_]

**Me: **[_pulls out an oxygen breathing mask_] Hope you have one of these!

**Jack and Robby**: What is this…stuff…? [_Begin to fade out_]

**Rose**: It feels sooo good… [_Begins to drift to sleep_]

[_Everyone falls over with a thud_]

**Me: **Security! Come and take these guys back to their rooms.

[_Security comes and takes away the carcasses_]

Sorry about that peoples, but I was bored. Now onto the real story (for those that haven't lost faith already).

**Notice:** Anything you read doesn't necessarily mean anything… if that makes any sense…

***

**Oneshot**

To Grandmother's House We Go, Oh No!

It was a nice day outside in the nice chilly weather. The trees were beginning to sprout their little signs of life threw their buds, birds were beginning to migrate back home, bears ending their hibernation, people we're enjoy their days after the holidays, and the Frontier Gang were on their way to Grandmother's house.

Takuya, Zoe, Kouji, Kouichi, Tommy, and JP were on their way to go see JP's grandma out in the North in a town called Cedar Valley. She stayed in a secluded suburb that was hard to get to, so the best way for the gang to go was through the train station that they were all too familiar of.

The reason why they were going to JP's Grandma's house you ask. Well they had a once in a life time opportunity to meet her… just so they could get VIP tickets to a concert in the town… and to also meet grandma of course. They all got ready once they heard about the news and were on their way to the train station.

Takuya, for the first time in his life, was the first one to arrive before the others could make it. He stood next to the wall in one of his favorite black shirts and a red zipper hoodie covering him. He also wore some faded jeans and brown sneakers.

"_Where are those guys? I thought I was the one that was going to be running late._" He thought to himself, with his hands deep in his pocket.

(**BGM:** She's like the Wind, by Patrick Swayze)

Just then, Zoe dazzlingly came walking down the subway towards his direction with her hair swaying in slow motion. She caught a glimpse of him and waved with a warm smile. Takuya waved back and watched her sashay over to him.

"Hey Takuya." She smiled and lightly tapped his arm.

"Hey…" he replied while checking out her outfit. "_Don't stare at her boobs! Don't stare at her boobs! Don't stare at her boobs!"_

She had on a tight, capped sleeve, purple shirt and skintight faded jeans, with brown fur boots. At the last minute, she slung on a black fur shrug right in front of him.

She looked at him and he cleverly looked back at her face without her knowing what he was staring at earlier with his wandering eyes. She got a glance at the top of his head only to see he was wearing the same cap and goggles he notoriously wore everywhere.

"Is that thing like glued onto your head or something?" she teased.

Takuya looked up as if he could see the goggles and the cap on his head. "Actually I go to bed in these."

She raised her eyebrow, nearly chuckling. She then looked away from him to see if anyone else was coming down the same tunnel she came through.

On cue, both Kouji and Kouichi were making their way over with tired expressions on their faces as if they had been running for days without end.

"Hey guys!" Kouichi greeted in his usual cheerful tone.

"Hey." Takuya and Zoe replied.

To Kouichi's left, Kouji stood, his mouth pouting, already showing some attitude.

"Whats up with him?" Zoe asked Kouichi.

"Oh he's just mad that he had to wake up early this morning. Plus, he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, literally." Kouichi explained in a low voice, trying not to disturb his brother.

"Hey, I just want to get this thing over with." Kouji snapped as crossed his arms and sat down on the nearby bench.

Kouichi gave Takuya and Zoe a "see what I mean?" expression.

"Where's JP and the little guy? They need to hurry up" Kouji asked, looking in both directions.

"They should be here any minute." Zoe replied," he called me on his phone saying he was coming with Tommy."

"Well we'll just wait and see." Kouji said as he tugged his bandana over his eyelids so he could gain the sleep he lost. He didn't get much sleep though, because JP and Tommy had just made it to the station.

"Hey e'rybody!" JP shouted. He and Tommy were walking over to the group ecstatically.

"Hey JP." Takuya and Zoe said at the same time.

"Sup," Kouichi greeted back.

"Crap! And I thought I would get some sleep." Kouji woke up, disappointed.

"So when do we leave?" Takuya asked JP.

"Whenever the next train comes by." He replied while looking at his watch. He was showing some signs of anxiety.

"So why are we doing this again?" Kouji wondered as he peeped his eyes open.

"Because, I wanted to see my favorite band, The Boogaloos, and ya'll promised me y'all were coming with me to see grandma about the tickets, remember?"

"Correction, they did. I wanted to stay home, but I was forced to come by my parents for no reason." Kouji defended, "I wonder why they want me gone?"

***

(Meanwhile… thousands of miles away)

"So where were we?" Mr. Minamotto asked, making his way over to his wife once Kouji was gone.

"Its been a while since we had the house to ourselves." She replied as she and her husband walked into their bedroom and shut the door behind them.

***

"Never mind… I don't want to think about it." Kouji snapped out of his daydreaming.

Suddenly the sound of train tracks rattling echoed through the subway tunnels.

"Look! It's the train." Tommy pointed as the train dashed its way through the tunnel. It sped its way to a stop right in front of them, with the wheels screeching.

"Alrighty guys! To Grandmothers house we go!" JP said with a grin.

"Oh no." Kouji grumbled lowly.

***

After an hour of traveling in the steel caboose, Kouji started getting agitated after waiting several minutes for the ride to eventually end.

"How far is this place, anyway?" he snapped. The lady next to him gasped, nearly frightened by his outburst.

"Just about a few hours away." JP answered.

Kouji rolled his eyes and went back to sleep while mumbling something under his breath.

"When's the next stop! I need to go to the men's room!" Kouichi blurted out. He was standing up and fidgeting in place while holding on to the pole to keep from falling.

"Can't you wait? We need to get to grandma's house as soon as possible," JP responded, "She's expecting us shortly."

While they bickered, Tommy was playing on his iPhone in the mist of the long travel, not really caring about their non-important conversation.

To Kouichi's fortune, the bus finally came to a screeching stop for a ten-minute checkpoint stop.

"Sorry JP, but I gotta go! I can't hold it any longer!" Kouichi leaped to the door once it opened.

"Fine! But be back within ten minutes before the bus leaves you!" JP warned.

Kouichi gave him a shocked look. "How do you expect me to go use the restroom in ten mintutes?"

"Times ticking!" JP tapped his watch.

With that, Kouichi ignored him and ran out the door.

"I'm coming too! For some reason I got to pee too. Must be a twin thing." Kouji jumped up from his seat, disrupting the lady next to him, who was applying her makeup. He didn't bother to turn around and apologize, since her face was messed up with lipstick and eye shadow.

"Well while they are doing their business, I'll go take a look around the indoor shop they have." Zoe said as she got up from her seat.

Takuya thought of this as the perfect moment for him to be alone with Zoe.

"I'm coming too… so-that-I-can…pro-tect youuuu.." the words came out from the top of his head without premeditated thought. She glanced back at him with a questioning look, not really understand what that meant.

"Ok?" she replied, puzzled.

"Well, why don't I come too. I could be helpful." JP suggested, since he didn't want Takuya and Zoe to be _all_ alone by themselves.

"You should probably stay behind to watch over Tommy!" Zoe pointed at Tommy who was sitting down, not paying attention to them.

"What if he wants to come?" JP replied quickly.

"Tommy are you coming?" Zoe asked to make sure.

Tommy looked up and simply shook his head.

"Well then I guess he's not coming." Zoe smiled at JP and patted him on the shoulder. "Take care and wait for us."

Both Takuya and Zoe left side by side into the tunnel that headed into the station.

"Great! Now I get to baby sit," JP mumbled to himself as he looked toward Tommy's direction, "Just freakin great."

***

The twins ran to the nearest restroom they could find. The place was hard to get to, since they could have easily missed it. They both approached the urinals and left a space between them, due to the sacred man law.

"Man, I got to let loose!" Kouji said aloud. Another man, who had just finished washing his hands, looked at two of them like they were derange human beings.

"Kouji you got to keep those things to yourself." Kouichi whispered

"Hey, if I got to go then I gotta go." Kouji replied.

Suddenly, a mysterious man with a joker mask over his face busted into the room with a gun in his hand. He was cock and loaded and he was looking for a hostage.

***

"Look at all these purses." Zoe said to herself, admiring all the purses on the racks.

Takuya was bored, standing there listening to Zoe talk about girl products and idle chatter to herself.

"C'mon Z. I think we should go already."

"Hold on." She hushed him.

This took him aback a little.

"Geez, what's so fascinating about purses?" the brunette wondered, annoyed by the thought of it.

Zoe chuckled, "hmhm, if you're bored then you can go ahead and leave, besides I didn't ask you to follow me."

Takuya had to admit he was stumped for second.

"Yeah, but I didn't want anything to happen… to you."

Zoe glanced at him from the corner of her and smiled at his attempt at being all caring and macho at the same time.

"Alright, just after I check out these sunglasses." She waved her hand at him dismissively.

***

"Everyone down!" the masked man demanded. There was only Kouji, Kouichi, and someone who was using the stall.

"I said, EVERYONE DOWN!" the man repeated. The gun shook in his hand.

Kouichi screamed like a little girl and fell to the floor without thinking twice.

"Hey do you mind! I got to piss here!" Kouji retorted to the man.

"Well then hurry up!" The guy kept looking out the door as if he was afraid someone would come and get him.

In the mean time, Kouji took his ever-beloved time without hesitating. He even whistled as if everything was all right.

"Hurry up Kouji! The guy has a gun in his hand!" Kouichi was hissing through his teeth.

Finally, when Kouji finished, he knelt down to the floor slowly.

"'K so what do you want?" Kouji asked, rudely. His brother hit him in the side with his elbow.

"'Oly Crap!" an old man screamed as he came out of the stall. He ran back in for pointless safety behind a stall door, while practically crapping his pants, literally.

"That's it! You two are coming with me!"

"Us? Why?" Kouji yelled. He couldn't believe what was going on and neither could his brother.

"Yeah. Why? We didn't do anything."

"I need hostages. Now COME ON!" the guy shook the gun violently.

"Man we didn't do anything! We're innocent men. We're innocent MEN! INNOCENT!" Kouichi screamed.

It was clear that something was wrong with the masked armed robber but they didn't dare question him or his motives as they did what he said so no one would get hurt.

"Now y'all are going to do as I say and don't try anything stupid!" he held the gun at their backs and told them to proceed in the given directions so that no one would notice.

***

JP, back at the train, watched over Tommy so that he wouldn't do anything stupid like randomly get up and walk off the bus to chase a butterfly.

"Everytime I try to get with Zoe, Takuya winds up ruining all the fun." JP grunted under his breath as he punched the palm of his hand.

The surrounding people watched his strange acts and wondered if he could be a potential threat to the train.

JP chuckled sheepishly trying to feign of any bad idea they thought of him.

"Don't worry people! I'm just having girl troubles."

Suddenly the train doors closed and the train started to move on its track to the original destination.

"Hey! What?" JP looked outside to see if any of his friends where coming, "Hey train guy stop! My friends haven't made it on yet!" JP yelled even though he was on the last cart.

Tommy frantically looked outside to see if maybe anyone of them could have been running right behind them, but none of them showed up.

The train continued to quicken its pace exceedingly, increasing until it was at a full onward speed to Cedar Valley.

"This is not good JP. What do we do?" Tommy asked still starring out the window as if their friends would miraculously come flying through the door any minute.

JP simply had no response, remaining shocked.

***

Takuya and Zoe, however where still in the shop and were just coming out.

"So how long did that take?" Zoe wondered.

Takuya checked his cell phone time, "HOLY CRAP! It's been fifteen minutes!"

They both looked at each with a mixture of shock and fear, not knowing if it was too late to catch their ride. Without haste, they suddenly burst into a run, Zoe leading with Takuya following.

Takuya tripped over a curb but managed to get back up without faltering. Once they made it out to the subway rails, they sadly realized they had missed their only train ride to grandmother's house… oh no.

(**To be continued…** just not in this oneshot)

* * *

**A/N:** Well there it is. The one shot that shall now branch off into three separate stories. Now if you (the reader) noticed then you realized that I'm going to be doing five stories after this, and I can barely handle two, but now five? Any who, I just would like to see were these stories could lead to and I hope you like the idea and stay tune. For the upcoming trilogy, I can already tell where most of the fan interest is going to be focused on *cough* Takuya *cough* Zoe *cough* *cough*, excuse me. Then there will be Kouji and Kouichi. And last but not least JP and Tommy (not like anyone really cares).

So will Takuya and Zoe ever make it to JP's grandma's house… together? Will the find love (Is it missing?)? Will Kouji and Kouichi survive from the crazy robber? Will JP and Tommy figure what to do on the train? Will Tommy actually get more lines? Do my OC's ever wake up? Will I stop asking so many stupid questions? Find out in the upcoming trilogies coming in a theater near you… no seriously go check.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Ignore any remarks I made in the past chapter about this story being a one shot or whatever. This is basically going to be one story mixed with different… I'll just let you read already.

**Disclaimer:** Nothing you read necessarily means anything… if that makes any sense…and I do not own the Digimon Franchise in any way, shape, or form, but you already knew that… didn't you.

* * *

**The Adventures of JP and Tommy**

"Ok so what do we do now?" Tommy asked. He had never felt disconnected from anyone since the time he lost his parents at the mall. He was 6 at the time it happened, and this was begging to bring back unpleasant memories.

The train sped at a constant speed as the wheel screeched against steel, regardless of who was able to catch a ride or not.

"Don't worry. We'll just call them. Yeah that's what we'll do." JP said in a dumbfounded state. He pulled out his cell phone and speed dialed Takuya's number, and hoped someone would pick up.

**The Adventures of Zoe and Takuya**

The two were standing in the middle of the subway, in awe. With Takuya pacing around in a frantic stupor, Zoe could not help but shout at the idiotic goggle head.

"Oh-my-GOSH! Takuya why didn't you tell me the train was leaving?"

He stopped in place, with a surprised expression. "Me? You're the one that was trying on your hats and sunglasses and stuff."

"Yeah, but you should have told me the train was leaving!"

"I did! I DID! But you wouldn't listen," Takuya raised his voice, "You acted like as if I was bothering you!"

Suddenly his phone rang during the quarrel.

"Hold that thought," he said before he answered his phone, "Hello?"

"Dude what happened?" JP yelled on the other end. "I thought I told yall to hurry up?"

"We did- or _I_ did!" he paced around in circles with Zoe starring a mud hole through him. "I tried to tell Zoe but she wouldn't listen because she wanted to try on some hats and stuff."

Zoe was now giving him a deadly look that could kill. How dare he place the blame on her, she thought.

"Geez, man. Are Kouichi and Kouji with you then?"

"No… I thought they made it with you."

"Nope there not on here!" JP clenched his forhead in frustration, for he did not like where this was going. Not only did the twins not make it on the train, but they weren't even with Takuya and Zoe.

"Crap so what do we do now?"

"We should call them on three-way."

JP put Takuya on hold, dialed Kouji's number, and waited for a response.

**The Adventures of Kouji and Kouichi**

Kouji felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, but to his misfortune, he could not answer it with a gun pressed against his spine, which could potentially shatter it to pieces.

"Don't answer it and keep walking, both of you." The man with the clown mask ordered, jamming his gun further into Kouji's back, causing him to yelp.

"I'm going. I'm going." He said as he dragged his foot.

Once they left out the restroom, a second man who was bald and strongly built than the one behind them grabbed both of them by the arm and walked them with easy. His arms made their heads look like twigs and face looked fierce as an animal. Even though he had the brawns of a body builder, chances were he did not have the brains to back it up.

Kouichi had the urge to scream for help, for if he did not they may never get another opportunity ever again. They say that within the first few minutes is the best time for escape. After that, you can kiss your blessings goodbye.

"Scream and I'll break your necks." The muscular dude snarled in a husky voice that sent chills down their spines, as if he were reading their thoughts.

Kouji's phone kept vibrating despite the fact he had to ignore it.

"Could I _please_ answer it? It could be my mother or something. I need to tell her how much I love her." The teen pleaded.

"Hey she's my mom too… sorta." Kouichi reminded.

"Shut up both of you and head towards the exit." The clown face sneered with the concealed gun inside his cloak in order not to make a scene (as if wearing a mask wasn't already suspicious).

Kouichi was not sure but from his peripheral vision, he may have two teens, one brunette male and a blond female, standing with their backs facing them. The brunette was on the phone while the blond stared at him with her arms crossed.

"Keep looking forward!" the two mysterious men barked, diminishing their chance of ever seeing their friends again.

-xxx-

"Dammit! None of them are answering!" JP said with disappointment. "Now what do we do?"

Time was running out, and everyone was starting to worry for the twins safety.

"How bout you guys get off at the next stop and we'll meet you there." Takuya suggested.

"What about the twins. How will they know to meet us?"

"We should look for them." Zoe chimed in on her phone.

"AH! Zoe how'd you do that?" she startled Takuya.

"Never mind that, we have to find Kouji and Kouichi. They could be in trouble."

"How do you know?" JP asked.

"I don't. I'm just saying that it doesn't make sense that its taking them so long to use the restroom, unless something went wrong."

"Yeah, like they're probably constipated." JP chuckled all by himself. The other two did not find it funny.

"Ahem, yeah, so… you guys go ahead and look for them. And if you don't find them, get on the next train and get your butts over here, pronto."

"Alright." Takuya answered.

"But what if we don't find them?" Zoe asked, still worried for the worst.

"Well they better not have chickened out and gone home or something. Other wise- wait a minute…. I see what's going on here now."

"What?" Takuya's voice cracked.

"You're trying to have Zoe all to you're self aren't you Takuya!"

"What? Don't be ridiculous"

"Oh ho ho yes, it all makes sense now. You saw both Kouji and Kouichi leave and you thought this would be the best time to have Zoe for the taking!" JP's voice was now menacing over the airwaves into Takuya's ears with his accusations.

Zoe interrupted him before he went too far, "Trust me JP, I'm not some trophy to be won by any of you guys."

JP felt a little eased."Fine whatever, but if you don't make it here within an hour, Me and Tommy are leaving without yall." With that, JP hung up.

Takuya hung up and looked at his phone to check the time. He placed the phone in his pocket and looked at Zoe who was looking at him with a grudging look.

"Well then, lets go look for those two, eh?" Takuya said with discomfort.

"I still can't believe you think this is all my fault." She muttered, with arms folded defiantly, "And to think I had to be stuck with you."

As she hounded Takuya, they went into the busy subway to look for their kidnapped friends (but of course, they don't know that).

-xxx-

The raven-haired twins were inches away from a jet black Cadillac. One of the guys opened it and ordered them to get in.

Still not knowing why all of this was taking place, they questioned the men's motives

"Why are yall doing this?" Kouichi whined. He was moments away from showing a temper tantrum.

"Yeah, what did we ever do to disserve this?" his brother added. Unlike his brother, he kept a cool head.

"Shut up. You know exactly why." The burly man was breathing down their neck with every word.

"Yah we got duwect odahs from da boss to have you two in custody." The clown faced said in a Brooklyn accent that wasn't noticeable before.

"I knew it Kouji. You have been dabbling in some deep stuff here, haven't you? What crimes have you been committing while mom and dad were away. Why Kouji Why?" he turned his attention to the kidnappers, "Look I'm sorry on the behalf of my brother for what ever felon he's committed. So could ya please let me go, because I had nothing to do with whatever he's done."

"What?" Kouji was shocked of his brother's actions… to think he would try selling him out to save his neck. "I didn't do anything. I've been a good boy."

"Shad up you two and just get in the cah and erybody goes home unharmed. And since when did yall change ya names anyway?"

"Change names? Kouji what is really going on here? Have you been living a double life?" Kouichi eyes then widened, "Or wait a minute. You not really my brother at all are you? Its all been a lie. I'VE BEEN LIED TO!"

He was causing a scene as people walked by to see what the maniac was screaming about.

"I'm not gonna ask you two agen. Now get in!" The joker face yelled as the body builder behind them shoved them in the car against their will.

They shut the door behind them and faced the crowd that was beginning to suspect something.

"No need to worry _people_! Just some rebellious teens who won't listen to their… uncles." The kidnapper lied then took off his mask in order not to seem anymore suspicious then he already was. The mans face had a light scar above his right eyebrow and a thin brown beard clung around his chin with hair to match.

Before anyone could question him and his partner, he quickly got in the drivers side and drove off.

Everyone then moved on as if seeing people dressed as comic book villains, taking people into cars against their will, was normal. Nonetheless, one man with common sense picked up his phone and called the police.

"Hello? Yes, I'll like to report a kidnapping."

-xxx-

Takuya and Zoe scavenged every bathroom in the subway and were at the last one. It was possible the Kouji and Kouichi were still in their. They had been searching for hours it seemed even though it was just a few mintues.

"Where could they be?" Takuya wondered aloud.

"This is the last restroom, so they got to be in there." Zoe mentioned as she jogged in front of him.

"Alright I'll go check." he said as he walked in the mens room, cautiously.

The pungent smell from the stalls, and what was in them, bombarded his nose, especially the last one. He inched closer with one hand over his mouth. The smell was so awful he was certain he would faint over any minute.

"WHAT DIED IN HERE!" a voice yelled from behind him. He spun around only to see Zoe gagging for air.

"ZOE! What are you doing in the men's room." The boy whispered.

"What? It's not like anyone's here."

"Aw! A girls in the guys room." one stranger yelled as he ran off once he saw her.

Zoe turned her attention back to Takuya and gave him an "Oh well" look.

"You shouldn't be here!" the boy continued in a hissing voice

"Well I want to find the guys just as much as you do so I shou—" she got a good whiff of the reek in the air, "OH gosh what is that?"

"Its coming from this stall." Takuya hissed, his hand waiving the air from his nose and mouth.

Zoe walked over to him and they both opened the stall together only to meet a displeasing sight.

"OH GOSH!" Zoe yelled

"What happened here?" Takuya asked himself. There was defecation all over the place and a poor ol' man who had fainted.

"Hey!"

The elderly man woke up in a daze, not knowing where he was. He saw the two teens staring down at him and he began to wheeze.

"No wait! We don't mean harm." Zoe tried to calm down the stranger.

"Is it over?" the old man asked, still subconscious.

"Is what over?"

"The guys. Are they gone?"

"What guys?"

"Did they stop?

"Did what stop?"

This was becoming an annoying pattern.

"Are the police coming?"

"WHY WOULD THE POLICE BE COMING?" The two yelled together.

"I DON'T KNOW!" the man replied with a concerned look. "And what are you doing in the men's room?" he was referring to Zoe.

"Look, would you please tell us what happened?" Takuya asked in his most polite tone.

"OH… well… as you can see I crapped my pants… it's a habit. It mainly happens whenever I'm frightened easily."

"Apart from that. What happened?"

"Oh… well let's see. I was coming out of the stall when I saw two teens and-"

"Two teens? How did they look." Zoe interrupted.

"Fine and healthy."

"No we need a description." Takuya cleared the ambiguity.

"Oh… well… they were boys. You know, they kind of remind me of my grandsons when I think of it because-"

"Hey buddy stay on topic!"

"Oops sorry. My wife complains about that all the time. She says I can be a complete-"

"Your doing it again"

"Oops sorry again. Now where was I."

"The teens. A description."

"I didn't get a real good look at them."

The two nearly fell over in dismay.  
"Well would you say they look like twins?"

The old man pondered for few minutes too long. He was stretching his brain muscles farther than he ever had to before.

"Yes. Yes I believe so."

Both Zoe and Takuya gasped with excitement.

"Did they have dark hair?"

"…and did one wear a bandana?"

"Yes! YES! How do you know?"

"Those guys are our friends."  
"Realy now. Well they may be in trouble."

"What?" this was unsettling news for the two of them. Here they were hoping that they were ok only to hear that they are in trouble.

"Yes. One man came in here with them at gunpoint and told them to follow. I tried to come out and stop him but I was too scarred to do anything," The man looked down at the floor in shame as he moaned," Oh I'm a failure."

Zoe gazed at the man with a concerned look. "That's not true. Because of you, we have an idea where our friends are."

The aging man looked up with a wrinkled smirk on his face. His ego boosted a little.

"By the way you young snappers, my name is Matthew… and I need to go home."

-xxx-

JP and Tommy were starring at each other's eyes with intensity. JP's eyes twitched as he glared into Tommy's. Tommy on the other hand was at ease. JP with all his might kept his eyes open until… until… he blinked.

"Ahaaah! I win!" Tommy exclaimed.

"Gah, how bout the best two out of three." JP whined.

JP looked in the direction of the train tracks. He wondered when the next train would come with his friends on board.

"_Guys where are you?_"

-xxx-

"You guys stay tight back there and you'll be back home in no time." The scrawny guy said as he placed the handcuffs on their wrist and behind their back.

"Home?" Kouichi asked himself, he never recalled these two ever raising him up during child hood. "Kouji, who are these guys?"

"How should I know?"

"You can't fool us, toots. We're gonna turn you guys in to yo fathah and get paid our rightful wages, so you guys don't think about spoiling this up, kapeesh."

Both of the twins still did not understand what was going on here.

"Look man. I don't know who you guys are, but you got the wrong guys." Kouji snapped. His arms struggled to get loose somehow.

"We're not rebellious teens running away from our parents." Kouichi added. He too was wrestling with the shackles on his wrists.

"Then why were guys at the subway today?"

Both the twins paused for a second, "We were going with friends to see a relative."

"What? You can't be serious. The boss got pictures of you guys and everthin saying that you tried to leave."

The twins could not understand how this was possible. Was there a family secret that was never revealed to them till now?

After their quick stop near the gas station, they were off on the road again.

(BGM: **On the Road Again**, by Willie Nelson)

The man with the beard brought out his pistol to threaten his hostages again so they wouldn't think about trying anything heroic along the road. The gun prance in his shaky fingers, keeping Kouji and Kouchi in discomfort, afraid that he might accidentally shoot them.

Time passed by for what seemed like hours until they noticed the climate changing fmro the usual urban and lively city to a country side desert.

"Where are you guys taking us?"

The bearded man was at his wits end. He was just about ready to shoot them for being stubborn and asking the same questions. Suddenly his eyes widened with a better idea in mind.

His head tilted closer to his comrade who was driving.

"You know, Brock, I was thinking. Why don't we just take them as our own and hold them as hostage, then sell them to the highest bidder," he whispered, "We don't have to baby sit for nobody."

"I don't know, Melv. The boss wont be too happy about that." The driver said in a deep and dopey voice.

"Scrooge! Forget the boss. We're freelancers. We do business when evah, with whom evah the hell we wahnt, and I say we play fah keeps, eh."

Kouji and Kouichi eavesdropped on the conversation and got a morsel of information. They knew who their kidnappers were and what they had in mind concerning their existence. It was now or never that they try to… escape.

-x-

"Paper, Rock, Scissors, Shoot!" Both JP and Tommy were playing a game of paper rock scisors to while away more time.

"Paper beats rock!" Tommy shouted, shoving it in JP's face.

"Not in real life." JP retorted. He did have a point. He never understood the logic behind the game.

"Man when are they going to get here?" he moaned with frustration.

-xxx-

Back at the station, the police had arrived and surrounded the area with caution tape as if a murder had taken place. Witnesses to the incident were giving their side of the story to what happened during the kidnapping. The Police in black coats and their golden seals went around patrolling the area for any clues as to what the men motives were.

Takuya and Zoe rushed around the corner near the entrance, only to run into one of the detectives that were working.

"Oops sorry!" they both said.

"No problem, just watch where you going next time." The prestigious man said. He stood a good 6'3" and had glass that framed his dashing blue eyes. His elegant blond hair sat on his head with pride and grace as it flowed in the unforeseen wind.

Zoe nearly melted as she was taken off her feet by his looks. Takuya noticed and tried to ignore her since he had few important questions to ask.

"Um do you know what happened here, sir?"

The officer turned around slowly to look at them again. Zoe's heart was racing a hundred miles a minute.

"We had a call saying that some teenagers were kidnapped."

"What were their descriptions?" Zoe asked, intrigued.

The cop gave them a perplexed look before he asked them if they knew the victims.

"Why? Do you know them."

"It might be our friends, Kouji and Kouichi." Takuya answered.

The officer took a few notes, "I see, and do you have any idea why they would be kidnapped?"

Takuya and Zoe glanced at each other with overwhelmed looks, before they looked at the officer and answered.

"Well, they are a bit moody sometimes, especially Kouji." Takuya said.

"Yeah, but Kouichi is an angel compared to him." Zoe added. She batted her eyes a little.

"I see…" the officer wrote some more notes. "Well, I'm going to be on this case until I make sure your friends are found and that we arrest who ever kidnapped them!" He said in exuberant and charismatic voice. Zoe was still giving him goo-goo eyes.

"Here's my card," he handed the a card with contact information to Takuya, but Zoe snatched it out of Takuya's grasp, and gently placed it in between her shirt.

The detective gave her a deranged look then directed his attention at Takuya.

"Um, call-me-if you hear from you friends or if anything new happens, OK?"

"Yes Mr... "

"Detective Peterson. _Jones_ Peterson." He emphasized the first name.

"Alright… detectiiiive." Zoe winked at the man with a flirty look. She was embarrassing the grown man. He was speechless.

Takuya quickly grabbed Zoe by the arm and yanked her away. "Bye Detective Peterson."

"Zoe! Get a hold of yourself.!" Takuya whispered once they were out of the officer's sight.

"What? I can't help it. He's _such_ a hottie." Her eyes went dreamy.

Takuya eyes were twitching either because he was annoyed or just plain jealous.

"C'mon already!" he waived his hand for her to follow, "We have to go catch up with JP and Tommy!"

**To Be Continued...**

* * *

**A/N: **I bet you get tired of those "to be continueds". Well there it is the second chapter. I still felt rusty writing this. I tried to make this sound as believable as possible so I hoped you enjoyed it so far. I have to tell you writing stuff like this is no walk in the park. You seriously have to think ahead before you write. Basically when ever I write I have the beginning and the end already in place. I just have to figure whats going to happen in-between. I really need to catch up fanfiction...


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** I'm afraid I have bad news… the show MUST GO ON! (Pardon any WEIRD grammar mistakes. Fan fiction has been acting funny when ever I update. For instance, certain words missing or words become bunchedtogether {ha ha did you get the joke at the end there?}.)

* * *

**The Great Escapade**

* * *

Kouji tampered with his handcuffs vigorously yet subtly to no ones attention. Not even the kidnappers. In his efforts he slowly lowered his arms underneath his legs, maneuvering them in front of him somehow. He tried effortlessly to maintain his cool with his heart pounding out of his chest.

"Kouichi, I need you to distract them," he whispered, "make sure they don't look back here."

"And what makes you think I can do that?" Kouichi replied.

"I don't know, but do it somehow. Our lives are on the line."

Kouichi displayed his best Oscar winning performance for "Nauseated Victim". He cleared his throat and sang a few notes for preparation.

"Uggh, I don't feel so good." He moaned, waiving to and fro in his seat, "I'm might just throw up. Ugoh!"

"Say what?" exclaimed Melvin, which turn out to be the gunman's name.

"You know. Vomit. Up chuck. Spew. Gag. Nauseate. Heave. Eject from the mouth. Old Faithful-"

"I get it! Just make sure we don't see it and try not to get any on us." Melvin said nonchalantly, not showing any concern.

"Try aiming it at yah brothah." Brock the driver mocked in deep dopey voice.

Kouichi couldn't believe the two. "_So much for caring._" he thought. He continued moaning some more to imitate a real nauseated person. He may not have noticed but he was making the captors uncomfortable.

Showing great flexibility, Kouji managed to get his handcuffed hands in front of him by pulling them from underneath his legs.

"You gotta teach me that." His brother whispered with an admirable facial gesture.

Kouji ignored his remark, analyzing his surroundings. He noticed that they were in the middle of nowhere with not a single building in site. The gunman was paying attention to his phone and the driver didn't blink an eye, keeping attention on the road.

"Alright. This is it," Kouji said glancing at the men and back at his brother," We strike now on the count of three."

"I don't know if I'm ready." Kouichi whined. He still acted sick while he listened inorder to through the guards off from noticing their little plan. His heart nearly burst out of his chest from the adrenaline pumping through his veins.

"Well you better be ready. Cause its now or never," the raven-haired twin replied.

Kouichi took deep breaths, breaths that bearing mothers gave before and during birth.

"Ok. Lets do this." He muttered.

"Ooone-"

"Uhhh"

"Twoooo-"

"Eeeeeh"

"Two and haaalf…"

"C'mon already."

"THREE!"

-xxx-

"NEXT STOP: GREENVILLE!" the intercom blared overhead throughout the station as people in their cloaks and business suits unanimously walked to their train stops. As soon as the train halted and everyone made their way in, Takuya and Zoe came scampering around the corner in a frantic mess. It seems like Takuya's tardiness was beginning to spread to Zoe.

"Gosh Takuya! You're slowing us down!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!"

"You're always late to everything and now you're starting to affect me."

Takuya panted in between breaths, "Well excuse me! Now you see how I feel when I'm run for the bus to school."

The train doors were almost closed with Zoe barely making it just in time. Takuya, leaping with all his might and flew through the narrow slip in-between the closing doors, landing hard on the ground. This just so happened to bring back memories.

"I need stop landing on my head." He said as he rubbed his soar head.

He looked up and looked around only to see people starring back at him. He quickly got up with an embarrassed face and laughed it off before looking for a seat. He saw his blond friend sitting down in a seat with no others eats available.

"You couldn't save me a spot?"

"What? There are no spots left. And besides I'm a girl so there for I should get the seat."

Takuya glared at her defiantly. "Fine I guess I'll stand." He grabbed a pole like others that were standing.

"This blows." He muttered under his breath. He glanced to the lady stranger that was sitting down next to him.

"How you doin?" said the immature teen. Suddenly the seat became vacant as she left due to how uncomfortable she felt. It was as if he was invading her personal space, but with words. Takuya, seeing this opportunity, took the seat while hooting like a hyena in triumph.

"Your such a pig, Takuya." Zoe snorted across from him. Her arms were folded, disgusted with Takuya's selfish behavior.

"Oh well. At least I got a seat." He laughed again.

Zoe then snapped her head away from him in disgust

Takuya gave a snickering look himself.

"Is that your boyfriend, 'cause I can do better." Said the stranger sitting next to Zoe, catching her off guard. He was busy listening to his heavy metal music when he over heard their conversation.

"What?" her cheeks went red for a second, "He's _not_ my boyfriend!"

Takuya couldn't help but stifle a chuckle that was ready to burst from his mouth.

"I don't see why your laughing, Takuya!" said the blond in a sneering tone.

"Oh nothing…' he said with his eyes looking upward with a whimsical face. He really knew how to push her buttons sometimes.

He looked at his phone to see what time it was. It was 10:30 am. He then pulled up his contact list of information to dial JP's number.

"Who are you calling, now? " Zoe asked.

"Who else but JP. Someone has to tell him that we're on our way."

-xxx-

JP, sitting on the bench with Tommy next to him, heard his phone ring. With angst, he answered in hope of some good news.

"JP, were on our way." Takuya's familiar voice spoke from the other end.

"Great! What about Kouji and Kouichi." JP replied.

"Well… you're not going to believe this but… Koujiandkouichiarekidnapped. !"

"Say what?"

"What."

"Huh?"

"What? I said 'what'. You told me to say what."

"What, never mind that. What do you mean Kouji and Kouichi are kidnapped." A worried tone crept into JP's voice.

"I _mean_ they're kidnapped. Vanished. Gone without a trace. But don't worry, the police are on it."

"Oh ok… the police are on it. That makes total sense now. I feel SO much- WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU KIDDING ME!"

"Ok - O-K! I understand your frustration, but look on the bright side. Me and Zoe are on our way, eh?"

If Takuya could see JP's face, he would see that it was sulking with sorrow.

"Fine. Just get here then. I'll deal with Kouji and Kouichi when they find them… if they find them."

"HEY! Don't say that. You got to be pessimistic." Takuya said with confidence.

"You mean _optimistic_." JP corrected him. Takuya could really be idiotic sometimes.

"Yeah that too." Takuya chuckle nervously, "They will find them buddy. We even have a Detective working on it. The names Jones Peterson.'

"And he's a hottie!" Zoe blurted over the airwaves.

"ZOE! You got to stop doing that!" she gave the guys, especial Takuya, paranoia.

"Well tell Detective Patterson that he better find them within 6 days!" JP mentioned at the last minute, leaving out this important information till now.

"Why six?"

"Yeah why six?"

"Because… that's how long we got until the band leaves for their next city of the tour."

"WHAT!" Zoe and Takuya shouted in unison over the sound of train wheels clanking against the hard steel rail. They manage to stir everyone's attention surrounding them.

"Yep, and with Kouji and Kouichi _missing_, this has gotten a whole lot worse." With that JP sighed in disbelief and exhaustion, "Anyways… you... you guys just get here. I'll be waiting." He clicked.

"Wow, I never heard him sound so beat." Zoe noticed.

"Yeah, its like someone took away his bucket of chicken… and _ate_ it" Takuya said with a stern look, yet discrediting his stupid metaphor.

Zoe, ignoring his foolish remark, looked past Takuya's shoulder at the window. Everything as just a blur of people, buildings, and a skyline passing by. They had to be going pretty fast she thought.

"How long do you think it would it take to get to the next train stop?"

Takuya, fiddling with his chin and looking up at the ceiling said he didn't know. He supposed it was thirty minutes.

The rhythm of the train clanking against the rails made Takuya drowsy with its sharp yet soothing repetition. Before he knew it he was snoozing.

"Takuya!" a female voice hissed at him. Zoe had her eyes on him. "Don't think about sleeping now."

"But I'm tired. Besides, you can look out while I take a quick snooze.' With that the brunette went back to sleep.

Zoe growled under her breath, 'I swear Takuya…"

She glanced to the side at her neighbor. He was winking at her. Now she saw how Detective Peterson might have felt.

-xxx-

"Getoff me you!" Melvin yelped with Kouji's handcuffed arms around his throat, "Don't just sit there! Do something Brock!" he continued kicking frantically.

Brock couldn't do much with one hand on the wheel and the other hand fighting off Kouichi, who was holding on to him like a bad habit that wont leave. In the struggle, Kouji managed to knock his gun out of his hand so that he could not shoot anyone. The two brothers did as best as they could to strangle or distract their kidnappers from gaining the upper hand.

"This was a BAD idea!" Kouichi screamed. Kouichi was loosing strength against the mighty Brock who was twice his size and strength. Kouichi had to think of something fast before he got the upper hand. By looking over the drivers shoulder, he saw the button that unlocked the doors. With both hands around Brocks massive neck, he reach the unlock button with his feet which were half way over the chair. Inches became centimeters and centimeters became millimeters until…

"I GOT IT!" the doors' locks sprung up; the twins let go of their victims and sprang for the door. As they flew out of the car, their bodies crashed and rolled on the clay dirt like tumbleweed, until they came to a still. They were almost free at last.

"BROCK! DERE GETTING AWAY! STOP THE CAH!" Melvin fidgeted for the gun.

Meanwhile, the twins got up from their bumps and bruises and made a run for it with hands cuffs still clenched to their throbbing wrists. Never had they felt so thrilled yet threatened at the same time.

"Hurry up Kouichi!" Kouji yelled at his older brother who was busy dusting himself off as if it was convenient.

The two of them ran in the opposite direction of the car like runaway zoo animals, in desperation of their lives.

"I gottet!" Melvin shouted. The gun was in his hand, triumphantly. He jumped out the car sporadically and shot random fire at his targets, each bullet whizzing past their moving bodies (how come the bad guys never know how to shoot. I'm talking about bullets flying everywhere and not one bullet hits the good guys. Just a thought.)

One of the bullets blazed past Kouji and Kouichi's ear so fast with sharp heat and momentum that it was deafening. Kouichi, still jolted by the bullet, buckled and stumbled over, pulling Kouji down with him. They both fell of the side of the road, tumbling down a steep hill to what seemed like a deep forest. They were sure to lose the kidnappers there. That's if they were still alive after the deadly fall…

**TO BE CONTINUED… **

* * *

**A/N: Dunh Dunh Dunh. Kouji and Kouichi, DEAD? JP and Tommy, PATIENT? TAKUYA AND ZOE, EVER GOING TO GET ALONG? LIKE THIS, WILL I EVER STOP TALKING? ****See next time, you must!**

**P.S. I have a new poll up  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Hey guys. Are you ready? That's good to hear… I think. Your not just saying that are you? Ok.

**And This Is Were the Journey Begins

* * *

**

Takuya was at top speed blazing down a dark and creepy corridor hallway. He lunged with all his might at the door that lay before him, knocking it over like ply wood. The dust from the collision settled and before him stood a masked man and his victim who happened to be the lovely Zoe Orimoto. She was bandaged up and tied to a chair with a knife inches away from her throat and livelihood.

"Let go of her!" Takuya jabbed a finger at the crook, "Or else meet my furry!"

"One move and she's dead!" the masked kidnapper threatened. Zoe's mouth was taped, but her muffled screams could be heard from a mile away. She frantically tried to move but her bandages would not budge.

Takuya had to think quickly and precisely. One bad move, and it could all end badly. From his peripheral vision, he grabbed a vase and hurled it at his enemy. The captor, by reflex, tried to dodge it leaving Takuya with an open chance. He rapidly charged at his victim and dropped kicked him straight through the brick wall, sending debris flying every direction possible. The man went down several stories before fallen to his untimely death.

"And that's what happens when you mess with me and M'lady!" the young man boasted in a majestic voice. He then charmingly turned around at the beautiful hostage that was before him. He carefully untied her from her ropes and un-taped her mouth gently.

"Are you alright now?"

"Yes… yes I am." Zoe with her golden locks swaying down her shoulders. She was worn out.

"But you must hurry, for there is a bomb in the building that could go off any minute." She warned.

Takuya's eyes dilated then contracted from what he heard, but he wasn't going to let anything stop him, for he was… TAKUYA KANBARA!

"Don't worry. I always hurry!" He said in a velvet smooth voice, then hoisted her by her sculpted waist with his masculine arm. He then proceeded to the window where they both jumped out, seconds before a grand explosion that lasted several minutes. It felt as if it were in slow motion, straight out of an action movie scene.

"_Oh_ Takuya. Your so… _brave_." The blond said in her weary yet awestruck voice. She was overwhelmed by Takuya's awesomeness.

"Of course. That's what makes me… intriguing." The brunette responded with sense of pride.

"I _love_ an intriguing man." She then proceeded to kiss him, and he the same.

"Takuya…" she said right before their lips met.

"What is it?" he sounded a bit impatient.

"This is just a dream."

His eyes widened.

-xxx-

"Takuya… TAKUYA!" Zoe violently shook her male friend who was in a deep coma.

"Have we kissed yet huh?" Takuya still groggy, tried to process what was going on around him. He didn't know what he was saying either.

"What? NO! What kind of question- were you having perverted dreams about me?"

Takuya darted his brown eyes shamefully away from hers. "No?"

"Hm…" she wasn't buying it, "Anyways. We have to get off. We missed our stop."

-(**30 minutes earlier**)-

"This day just keeps getting better and better." JP kicked a pole out of frustration. Tommy, who was quiet for the majority of the time, was getting tired as well.

"I'm hungry. When are we going to eat?"

JP paused. He hadn't thought about that.

"Can't you just suck it in for a while? Drink you saliva or something."

Just then a train noise roared from around the corner.

"This has to be their train." JP said excitedly. Now he and at least four of his friends could make it on their way to their original destination.

As the train came to a screeching halt, the passengers unloaded and dispersed to different locations.

They waited and waited but there was no sign of Takuya or Zoe. Now JP and Tommy were worried that something might have happened. What could possibly be going on with Takuya and Zoe?

_They said that they had boarded the next train_ JP thought.

After everyone had gotten off, the train trudged on off to its next stop.

It may have been Tommy's imagination, but he could have sworn seeing their friends through the tinted windows of the passing train, snoozing in their seats. Of course when he noticed, it was already too late.

-xxx-

Meanwhile, Kouji and Kouichi were recovering from their steep fall down the hill. They were underneath the shade of a lofty giant tree, which was protecting them from view.

(Up the Hill)

"Damn it Brock! We lost 'em!" Melvin had his hair clenched tightly by his fingers. He was a desperate man in a desperate situation. He lost the two constituents and this was unacceptable, even for him.

"You say we go down there and check to see if they're down there?" Brock suggested, gesturing his hand towards the bottom of the slope.

"Naw, it looks like a long way down dere." We'll just wait until they come back up eventually." Melvin aggravatedly kicked the dirt as if it would make him feel better. "The boss is gonna chew me out fah dis, and then some!"

"What about me, man. Won't he chew me out too?'

Melvin gave his partner in crime a stern look before he slapped him on the back of the head. He then stormed off to the car in frustration.

"I get no respect, I say. I get no respect ad all." Brock muttered before he followed his partner.

(Down the Hill)

"Where lucky to still be alive." Kouji grunted after waking up from his fall.

"Yeah, all this grass must have cushioned our fall." Kouichi replied, still disoriented.

Kouichi stared up at the big tree in awe. He slowly staggered to his feet but jolted in pain from his left arm.

"AGH!"

"What is it?'

"I think I sprained my arm."

Kouji wobbled over to his twin to check his injuries.

"Oh its nothing. Just a little snap should get it back where it belongs." He said after checking.

"SAY WHAT?"

"WHAT?"

"HUH?"

"I said what?"

They both exchanged blank stares. Kouji saw this as his opportunity as he grabbed his brother's shoulders and snapped it into place causing a loud shriek. Birds went scattering in different directions.

"You could have warned me!" Kouichi hissed, still clenching his shoulder in agony.

"Don't worry. You'll thank me later." Kouji then proceeded probing through his raven hair for something.

"Now what are you doing?" Kouichi asked.

"I'm looking for- there it is." He held up a hairpin that was clipped into his hair. With it, he jammed the pick into the locks of his handcuffs, releasing them from his wrists. The handcuffs dropped to the ground right before Kouichi eyes.

"Geez, I swear you were raised in some sort of secret underground society of spies and assassins. Are you sure you have nothing to do with those men?"

"For the last time NO! Now stop asking." The looked over to his brother who was starring up at him with disbelief.

"C'mon. Give me your hand… cuffs." He held his hand out for his brother.

Kouichi did as he was told, as Kouji grabbed his wrist, releasing them from their bondage. "You've got to teach me how to do that." Kouichi rolled his wrists, testing to see if they still worked while his brother put his hairpin away back in his hair. He could still feel pain in his shoulder.

"Do you think those guys are still up there?" Kouji pointed a finger towards where they were a minute ago before the fall.

"I'd bet so without a shadow of a doubt." Said Kouichi. He made his way over to his brother side as they both gazed up the steep slope. A majestic breeze blew past them, leaving an eerie silence.

"Let's get out of her"

"Yeah let's do that."

With that, they two of them silently walked off hoping not to cause a stir.

-xxx-

Meanwhile, back at the train stop, Takuya jumped up from his seat suddenly as the words echoed in his ear.

"What do you mean we missed are stop?"

"What do you mean what do I mean? We missed our stop."

Takuya eyes darted from side to side. "So now what do we do?"

"Well we have to go back." Replied Zoe who was looking out the window. All she saw was vast fields and cacti. That couldn't be good she thought.

Takuya, with his memory return back to him, jerked his head at Zoe who was still standing over him.

"Wait a minute I thought I asked you to look out for us?"

"I did but…" she looked down sheepishly, "I fell asleep also."

Takuya fell over in disbelief. He slowly got back up to contemplate their next move.

"Alright! We'll just have to… well just take the opposite route and head back where we came from."

They both made there way out the exit. The place was out in the open in what seemed to look like a barren desert. There wasn't much activity going on except for shrubs bristling in the wind and tumbleweed tumbling by.

"I can't believe a train actually runs through here." Takuya said, dumbfounded.

Zoe nodded in response as she followed close behind. She grabbed tightly to her fur coat as a violent gust of wind brushed past them, sending sand in there direction. To there dismay, the train went on without them to its next destination.

Both of them walked over to a large print map route of the train's destinations spots and were surprised by the results.

"What! There is no back route!" Takuya shouted with his fingers tracing over the lines of the train paths. "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSE TO GET BACK!"

Zoe, tracing her slender fingers along the lines of the route, realized that the train went around in circles, "We would have to go around again in order to meet up with JP and Tommy, and that might take a while."

"I'm going to call JP and tell him." Takuya pulled his cellular device from his pocket. In the corner of the screen he saw the battery sign flickering red. It was at 1%.

"BEANS! My battery's low." He glanced at Zoe, "Do you have a charger."

Zoe shook her head. It looks like he was out of luck.

-xxx-

"DUE TO IMPROMPTU COMPLICATIONS WITH OUR SYSTEM, ALL TRANSPORTATIONS WILL BE DELAYED TILL FURTHER NOTICE!" the man on the intercom informed the flock of subway passenger in a melancholy tone. Who ever it was didn't sound to please to be doing his job.

"I knew I should have stayed home taday…" JP muttered to himself after hearing the news.

He walked over to Tommy who was waiting patiently like a little child even though he was much older.

"We'll Tommy, it looks like we're on our own…"

Tommy jumped out of his seat with a new rush of energy.

"Finally! We can start moving"

JP's phone vibrated once again. He answered already knowing who it could be.

"Takuya, what now."

"Sorry about missing you guys. We accidentally fell asleep."

"Oh accidentally eh."

"Yeah"

"Hm well get a load of this the train station is down due to 'technical difficulties'. So it looks like you guys are on your own." JP said.

"What? You're kidding right?" Takuya was just as shock as JP was at first.

"Nope," JP looked at his watch, "So do you guys still remember how to get to the my grandma's house?"

"Ummm… yeah."

"Good, We'll meet you there."

Takuya did a double take, "How?"

"Just find a way dammit!"

"What about Kouji and Kouichi."

"They'll live."

On the other end of the phone Zoe was getting an incoming call. She fidgeted through her coat pockets for phone.

"Hello?" answered not knowing who could be calling her.

"ZOE!"

"Kouichi?" she recognized that voice from anywhere. It look like the connection was faltering.

"Yeah!… were…. Ok."

"What happened."

"We… kidnapped."

Takuya listened to her conversation and JP at the same time.

The connection was very weak and could give up at any second. "We heard all about it."

"Zzzzz…*crackle*….. how?"

"The police are all over it looking for you guys." Zoe informed. She was glad that they were ok.

Kouichi on the other end was relieved to hear that also.

"We….zzzz…-caped"

"What?"

"ESCAPED!"

"HOW- never mind that. Where are you guys?"

Kouichi looked around for any distinguishing features of their surroundings. he could not find anything but sand and shrubs.

"I don't know *crackle* zzzzzz… just sand….zzzzand cactuses."

"Cacti?" The connection went flat.

"Kouichi? KOUICHI!" She yelled into the phone peace with no returning response. The sacred connection had finally given up.

Takuya, while hearing her conversation, juggled with his own discussion with JP.

"KOUJI AND KOUICHI ARE ALIVE!" he shouted.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW?" JP replied. This was actually good news compared to what was going on lately.

"They just called Zoe."

"Are they all right?"

"By the sounds of it... yes."

And so the two of them went on with their discussion of what the new plan was going to be in order for them to get to JP's grandmas house in time for the concert. They would all have to go their separate ways on a long journey to grandmas house. It will be tedious, and there will be hardship, but it just might be exciting… somewhat.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: "**Shooby doo… shooby doo doo. Shooby shooby doo"

Haha, perhaps that's a sign of what's to come in the next chapter.

As you can see I drug this story out a bit. It's the fourth chapter and nothings happened yet except the fact they all know that everyone's ok. And so I guess I'll see you in the next update. Be there… or be square.

**Quick question:** Which duo adventures are you liking so far?


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** I've started classes again so you know what that means… *crowd moans*I know, I know. I probably won't be uploading as quickly anymore (if you consider once a week quick), but look at the bright side. I'll still be able to update… hopefully. Alrighty then… let's-get-rea-dy-to ruuuuuuuuummmbllllllleeeee !

**And This Is Where the Journey Begins

* * *

**

After getting off the phone with JP, Takuya faced Zoe and had a sudden eye-starring contest with her. This lasted five minutes.

"What?" she asked, creeped out by his appearance.

Takuya skewed his lips to the side. "It looks like we're on our own here, and my phone just died."

*Cue death music*

He faced his phone with a solemn look.

"I'll miss you phone. You were my best friend. The best friend anybody could have." The brunette went on and on in a monotone. Yes, he was actually grieving over a piece of plastic.

Zoe on the other hand could not believe her ears and eyes either. She glanced around to make sure no one was watching the both of them, but of course no one was. They were the only ones in what seemed like a forsaken desert.

"Takuya snap out of it. Your making-"

"SILENCE! Leave me with phone in peace." He knelt on one knee.

Zoe folded her arms because of his insolence.

"Alright. I'm over it now. Lets go."

"Where?" Zoe questioned his motives.

"To grandma's house, where else."

"Do you have any idea how long that is or where to go?"

"Um yeah?" he scoffed, walking around aimlessly, "I mean how long can it be?" he trudged off in a random direction.

"Takuya!" she called out to him, "It's this way." she said with a pointed finger in the opposite direction.

He walked over to her in the direction she mentioned with a beet red face from embarrassment.

"This is going to be a long day." She muttered, having to put up with Takuya's antics.

-xxx-

"Tomoki!" JP called out to his friend, "Lets go."

Tommy jumped out of his seat and eagerly followed the large fellow.

"Can we get something to eat now?" Tommy groaned, hands clench against his stomach.

JP sighed, "Fine, where you wanna go?"

"McDONALDS!" (product placement)

JP sulked, "Yipee!"

The two walked through the subway halls out to the different restaurants, searching for the well known franchise. It seemed like every restaurant and chief was calling out to him to try his or her menu.

"I should be with Zoe right now…" he randomly mumbled under his breath, "But NO, that Takuya got in the way of things. Not only that, Kouji and Kouichi some how managed to get kidnapped… KIDNAPPED!" she yelled the last word a bit loudly, loud enough for Tommy to hear.

"Is something wrong?"

"Oh no… nothings wrong. Everything's fine."

"You wish you didn't have to put up with me don't you?" Tommy said, with watering puppy eyes.

"Wha? Oh no of course not." JP felt bad.

"Face it, You don't want to deal with me." Tommy wailed.

He was causing a scene as people walked by. He was fourteen years old and still crying like a baby at his age. His cries were so loud that even one couple walked by and confronted JP.

"Look young man, you should be nicer to your younger brother and appreciate him no matter what. Hmph!" And with that the couple walked off with a disgustful look on their faces.

JP felt so embarrassed. Not just because a couple of strangers scolded him, but they mistook him for being Tommy's older brother as well.

He stood in place with eyes wide and mouth open, as Tommy recovered and saw the restaurant they been looking for.

"Oh look, there goes McDonalds."

-xxx-

(Meanwhile, thousands of miles away…)

Kouji and Kouichi explored the deserted area, weary to their core of existent since the sun's heat was blazing down on them. Sweat from their foreheads traced down their face to their chins, which was the suicide point for them to fall off to their sandy death (What?)

"We've been walking for hours…" Kouichi moaned with his back hunched over.

"Are you kidding me its only been 15 minutes." Kouji checked his phone. Kouichi fainted over once her heard that.

"Kouichi! Quit being a pansy and get up. We only got like…300 more miles to go."

"That's it! I don't think I can do this! We can't possibly walk all the way their."

Kouichi shouted at his brother like a frenzied maniac that just got out of an asylum.

"Cool your jets. I didn't say we'll walk all the way. We'll just use our resources."

"I don't know man…" Kouichi had no hope in his tone, "You should check to see if you have service around here."

Kouji held his phone up to the sky, hoping for a single bar of signal to their rescue.

"Dang it… still nothing. I'm cutting my contract with these people as soon as possible."

Kouichi got up from the ground, "Told you they suck…" he was referring to his phone company.

In the distant they could see the mirage effect taking place as the heat waves wavered between the ground and the air. A few meters away they could spot the road that they first ventured off from. With this, they could now properly find their way to their destination.

"We should hitch a ride." Kouichi stammered as they inched closer and closer to the side of the deserted asphalt road.

"Dude, for one, I don't think anybody comes through here at all. And second, we can't trust anybody now. I mean we just escaped a couple of kidnappers and now you think its ok to ride with a stranger." Kouji said in a smart-alecky term. (Who is Smart Aleck? He sounds very smart.)

"We'll you better have another way of getting their cause I'm not walking 250 plus miles." He blew the air with a tired breath before he knelt to the ground to regain his energy. From down their he looked up at his twin who stared off into the distance with the wind blowing. He looked like he had a lot on his mind.

_I wonder how the others are doing? _Kouji wondered.

-xxx-

"We should probably tell JP about Kouji and Kouichi," Zoe said with dreamy eyes

This took Takuya by surprise. Since when did she fancy JP so much?

"But I already talked to him?"

"NO not that _JP_. Jones Peterson…" her eyes glazed over again as she pictured him the day they first met.

Takuya was obviously jealous of the detective, but she did have a point about informing him.

"JP? You called him JP? Doesn't that creep you out?"

She gave him a serious don't-you-dare-go-there look.

"Anywho, do you still have the number?" he quickly changed the subject, careful not to get on her nerves.

"Of _course_ silly." She shook her head whimsically before she pulled out the card from her cleavage, where she hid it."

Takuya gawked for a split second. "Good, now let me see your phone so I can call him.

She pauesed for second, "But I wanted to call him." She moaned in her innocent, sweet talking, squeaky voice.

"I think it's best if I called him. Don't want you loosing your mind or anything." He mumbled the last bit to where she didn't hear.

"Noooooo." she moaned again.

"Zoe, give me the phone."

Zoe pulled out the phone in her hand and looked at it as if she were making a life changing decision.

"Why can't I call him?"

"Because… I said so."

"NO!"

"Zoe!"

"NOOOOOO!"

He lunged for the phone but she was too quick as she pulled it away from his grasp.

"Come on Zoe I'm not playing."

"Me neither."

This called for war. Takuya walked over too her, but she took steps away from him in synchronization with his. Steps became paces; paces became hops and wobbles, but before long it became a full out sprint.

"Zoe! Give me your phone!"

"NO!" She dialed the number while she juked and dodged Takuya's failed attempts at her phone. She was light on her feet and hard to catch. He finally grabbed her by the arm and yanked at her phone, initiating a tug of war.

"STOP! YOU'LL BREAK IT!"

"NEVER!" Takuya jerked with all his might, "JUST GIVE ME THE PHONE AND NO ONE GETS HURT!"

"Helllo?" the phone said. Detective Peterson was on the other end and was confused about the conversation he was hearing.

Seeing her chance she yanked the phone with all her might, sending Takuya to the ground, filling his face with sand.

"Hello?" the detective asked again.

"HI DETECTIVE PETERSON!" Zoe sounded flustered like a giddy schoolgirl with her fingers twirling a strand of her hair.

Takuya face stayed put in the sand in defeat.

"And this is?"

"OH this is Zoe. Remember? You told us to call you if we hear anything new."

The detective checked his notes, "Oh yeah I remember now. So how's you and your boyfriend doing?"

Zoe shuttered at the word "boyfriend"

"He's not my boyfriend!" she shouted then regained her composure.

"OH…. sorry."

"Its ok." She forgave him and put on a cutesy tone in her voice again, "Remember when you said we should call if anything should come up."

"Yes?"

"Well something did. Kouji and Kouichi just called us earlier and their fine."

"Oh that good to hear. That's really good." The detective brought his notepad and labtop, ready for anything she gave him, "Did they tell you where they are or who kidnapped them?"

"They didn't say much due to bad phone connection. All they said was that their in a desert area with nothing but cacti around them."

"De…sert..ted place…. With …. Cac-ti" Mr. Peterson wrote down word for word, "Me and my people will use this information to conduct a search.

He used his high tech labtop to search for areas nearby the station that had desert sand and cacti.

"We'll it was nice talking to you Zoe and-"

"OH please… call my Izumi."

"Oh uuh o-k… Izumi. We'll tell you if we hear anything."

"OK… Byeeeee." She cooed over the phone waves just before Takuya snatched the phone from her hand.

"Hey what are you doing?" she was startled a bit.

"I said I wanted to call him." Takuya retored, getting sand out of his hair and mouth.

"But its my phone."

"So? That doesn't mean I can't use it."

"Actualy I think it does. I can let anyone use my phone if I want." She started getting smart with him.

"And what was with all that flirting?" Takua countered.

"Flirting? What flirting? I wasn't flirting." Her cheeks went red.

"Yeah right. I could see it from a mile away. You were wreaking with flirt-ation…ness..ess."

They looked at each other for a split second as if something didn't make sense.

"Oh… I see. Your jealous." Zoe said after regain her thought process.

"Wha? That's not the point." Now it was Takuya's turn to turn red in the face

"Oh yes it is… your jealous."

Takuya realized he couldn't really reason with her, with guilt running through his emotions.

"Gah whatevah. Lets just keep going now."

With that he trudged along the side of the vacant road which no vehicle has traveled on yet. He felt like they were the only two in the whole world.

Zoe stood behind for second, reading Takuya's emotions like a open book. Could he really be into her?

(Meanwhile… thousands of miles away)

"Yo Melvin, I don't think they're still down there."

"Oh really? What makes say you dat?"

"I uh… well I don't think they've come back."

The two bandits were steaked out in their car waiting for the twins to return to the top of the hill, but their was still no sign of them. Maybe they were dead they thought.

"Dat's it!," Melvin kicked the door open, "I'm going down there."

"Yo me too." Brock rushed out to his partners aide.

They were at the edged of the slope before they uncomfortably got on their knees and and slowly crawled down.

"What evah you do, Brock. Down knock us down." The scrawny Melvin was worried that Brock would misstep and crash into—

"Aaaaaaah!" sure enough Brock misstepped and crashed into Melvin, sending them down to the bottom underneath a gigantic tree with a loud and sudden thud.

"Dammit Brock! What I tell ya!"

"Sorry I misstepped."

Melvin brushed his hair and got up on his aching feet. "So where are dose two?"

He spotted the empty handcuffs laying in the grass.

"Dammit! They got away!"  
"Ya not only dat dey got out of em handcuffs."

Melvin stared at his accomplist with a sturdy look before he slapped him across the head.

"Doh you idiot. They got away and we have to find them somehow." He turned his attention back up the hill where their transportation lied.

"Dey couldn't have gone too."

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **I did it again. Yeah so read, review, and tell me whacha think. Maybe you can even suggest some fun things the gang can do. *raises eyebrows twice*

**PS** (Fanfiction is really acting weird for me so if you see multiple grammar errors and missing words I apologize.)


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** We'll I'm about to close my poll and only like one person voted…so yeah. Just to let you know.

* * *

**And This Is Where the Journey Begins (Part 2)**

"Shooby doo… Shooby doo doo…Shooby shooby doo " Takuya sang to himself a tune that sounded like something from a doo op band. He was melodically singing into it louder and louder.

"ShoobyshoobyshoobySHOOOOOOO-"

"Will you STOP IT already?" Zoe shouted.

"Whah?" Takuya contrived a surprised face.

"OH don't act stupid. You've been singing for the past," she checked her phone for the time, "the past fifteen minutes…has it really been _only_ that long?"

"Well excuse me. I didn't know I wasn't aloud to sing. After all were stuck together in this FORSAKEN DESERT!" Takuya screamed to the sky as a flock of birds fluttered at the sound of his voice. "I mean, seriously. Since when did this town have a desert anyway?"

After looking up at the shining sun (why would he do that?), Takuya looked at his phone again hoping that it would miraculously come back to life. Of course not but it never hurts to try he thought.

Zoe, on the other hand was ignoring him while fanning herself due to the excessive heat. She took off her faux trimmed coat and carried it in order to stay cooler somewhat. She looked over at her partner who was still wearing his zipper hoddie as if the heat didn't affect him one bit.

"Aren't you hot?" she asked, surprised by his lack of sensing the hotness.

Takuya glanced at her from the corner of his eye, "No? Why?"

"Its like a _hundred_ degrees. I'm getting hot just by _looking_ at you."

Takuya didn't seem to flinch at her remark. He liked it hot for the most part. "Well I guess I'm warm blooded… or is it cold blooded." Confused, he mumbled the last words to himself

Zoe bashfully looked away and smirked at his bewildered face. She had to admit, he looked cute when he was puzzled, but she would not be caught dead saying that to his face or to his awareness.

They trotted further, hoping they could find a ride or some form of transportation, and in the humid distance the roaring of a Cadillac Escalade GTX 400 HR PM DWM X^2 Sudan came at a steady pace, inching closer and closer. They both turned their heads at the same time, with hope in their young naïve eyes. Finally, there was hope.

"This is are chance to hitch a ride." Takuya suggested while thrusting his thumb out to the road to signal them.

Zoe gave him a worried look. She wasn't sure if this was a good idea. Could they trust anyone right now?

"I don't think we should…" despite her efforts to stop him, the Cadillac had already stopped, and the tinted windows slowly went down like an upside down curtains as it revealed the two men inside. They looked to be in there late thirties and seemed to have been in a scuffle of some sort.

"You two need sumtin?" a scrawny man with an auburn beard asked in a rude tone.

"Uh yeah you see…" Takuya paused as Zoe and he approached the vehicle, "We were wondering if you could take us to Cedar Valley up north from here?"

The bearded man exchanged a wild look with his bald headed driver.

"You hear dat Brock? Dese two want a ride to Cedah Valle?"

Brock began to chuckle in his deep chubby voice.

"Dey want US to travel several miles tah who knows where? Get a load of DAT! Aahahahahaaa!"

"Yeah Melvin, and maybe we can also drive them to the moon while were at it!"

Even more laughter erupted between the two of them, but Takuya nor Zoe found anything funny. They really needed help and these guys weren't showing any compassion.

They both stared at the two men, confused since they weren't sure if they were just joking around and later going to help them or drive off like careless cold hearted-

"Listen here toots…good luck getting to CEDAH VALLE! AAAAAHAHAAA" the man hissed a haughty laugh deep from his scrawny throat and off went the Cadillac into the distance, never to be seen again.

The car left Takuya and Zoe in the dust only to feel left out and hopeless.

"I knew I should have told you to take of your top off." Takuya muttered.

"What?" she slapped him across the arm but he ignored the pain.

(Meanwhile… thousands of miles away)

Back at the station, JP and Tommy were eating their meal in peace at a round table. Tommy hadn't cried since then, and JP was keeping his cool, collecting his thoughts. One, Kouji and Kouichi turned out to be fine. Two, Zoe and Takuya were already on their way to his grandma's house. And last but not least, him and Tommy were at the station eating at was the one time he could go see his favorite band and his friends had to go mess it up. At this rate he could never make it. He only had 5 days and time was ticking.

He snapped out of his troubled mind and paid attention to Tommy who was chomping away at the hamburger he ordered… or should I say, JP ordered.

"You finished with that?" JP asked with a tired look on his face. If there was anything he wanted more than those precious tickets. It was a bed to sleep on.

"Yep, I'm done." Tommy replied, wiping his mouth from food particles. He had no idea what JP had planned next for them, since he was totally relying on him to get them to were they were going.

"Um JP?" he beckoned.

JP looked up from his downward gaze.

"You think everyone's gonna be alright."

JP mustered up a smile form somewhere, "Sure… yeah. Of course everyone's gonna be alright."

Tommy smiled in response. He didn't seem to loose much of his youth over the years. It was if he was still in third grade when they first met.

"So where are we going to now?"

JP ruffled through his wallet to see how much money he had. There were only a couple of hundreds and a few change left.

"I dunno… but we'll find out."

They both got up and made there way to the door and out of the station. Meanwhile a group of three girls around JP's age walked towards them cooing and giggling at one another. They were all attractive but the lead girl was perhaps the most gorgeous in her tank top and short shorts with sunglasses. Shockingly, the last thing JP wanted to think about was girls for a change. He noticed they caught a glimpse of both him and Tommy and couldn't help but awe.

"Aaaawe!"

JP suddenly changed his demeanor from depressed to elated. He never had a group of teenage girls adore him for whatever reason. Maybe they were blind or for once nonjudgmental.

The girls confronted JP with a question.

"So is he your brother?" one of the girls asked, referring to Tommy.

JP's smile went flat. "Uh well…"

"Cause he's cute." Another one of the girls added.

_He's cute because you think he's my brother?_ He thought in his head. He didn't see the logic.

The lead girl touched Tommy's nose and then patted him on the head.

Her gaze then lurked upwards from Tommy to JP with a cute smile.

"You, know I love a guy who likes to hang around with his younger siblings." The lead girl flirtatiously tapped the bridge of his nose with her lovely index finger while the others giggled. They went inside leaving Tommy and JP speechless (mainly JP).

JP, still flabbergasted, stared that same blank stare he makes when his mind was blown away.

"You know what, Tommy? You're actually better than a pet dog.

(Meanwhile… thousands of miles away)

Kouji and Kouichi were still pacing around for hours, still not sure where they were going. It was getting late as the sunset approached. For hours they walked without a site of water or green leaves… until now. There brains felt like mush as they felt them wobble in their heads. Their bodies spiraling in limbo and vertigo.

"Kouji, are we dead yet?" Kouichi muttered through his dry cracked lips. He clung to Kouji's back like a baby chimpanzee.

"I think so…" he paused for second has a glimmer of light caught his eye. "Wait… is that… a lake?"

The both of them were astonished to see what they were seeing but were just as skeptical.

"You sure it isn't a mirage. I heard you start seeing things when you die."

"I don't know but lets find out. And get off of me, your being clingy."

They walked faster to the lake until they started jogging. There were blotches of grass shrubs here and there until the land was covered in it. The brothers found themselves in the mist of an oasis.

"I don't believe it… WATER!" Kouichi leaped in the air and dashed for the lake that was glistening before them. He hurled his body into the cold water to relieve himself of his dry hot body.

"Come on in Kouji! Its nice!" Kouichi shouted as he swam around with his clothes still on.

Kouji, ignoring him, knelt down on his knees at the edge of the lake with his face in the water, drinking from the scoops in his hand. In the process he washed his face thoroughly to get the grime out. He had never felt so relieved by the cold water against his face.

The sensation of cool water rushing down his mouth was also refreshing.

"Who knew there was forest connected to the dessert!" Kouichi said as he came out of the water. He slowly whipped his wet raven hair in the air like a model seen on television. The water splattered all over Kouji's face causing him to squint and repulse.

"Hey, quit it! You don't see me whipping my whipping my head back and forth like a little girl."

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself." Kouichi straightened his hair out while noticing something from the corner of his eye. He saw a deer grazing the nearby grass, paying no attention to them whatsoever. Kouji noticed it too. It's one thing to read about occurrences like these in the textbooks at school, but another thing to actually see in real life.

"Oh look, a baby reindeer." Kouichi

"A doe," Kouji said with a serious face, "It's a doe."

Suddenly, a gunshot crackled and the baby deer fell to a slump.

"OH MY GOSH!" Kouichi shrieked like a little girl.

Even Kouji's eye's widened with shock.

In the mist there was an elderly man dressed in khaki overalls and a plaid dress shirt. He was also wearing a strange straw hat to match.

"Rats! I killed Bambi." The old man hooted. He picked the slump up with his gloved hand and stuffed it into a bag. He seemed experienced in what he was doing. He was completely oblivious to the sight of two young teens watching him.

"Why'd you shoot him?" Kouichi asked to the old man, his voice trembling. If Kouji didn't know better, he'd thought that his brother was about to cry.

The man looked up startled for a bit before he noticed the two.

"Oh no need to worry about this little feller. She wont be going to waste." The senior continued stuffing the creature into the bag so he could wrap it over his shoulders and head home for the long day.

"What do you mean she won't go to waste?"

"What else does one do with a dead deer?" the elder implied as he fixed his bifocals on the bridge of his nose.

"YOU'RE GOING TO EAT IT!"

The old man stood there amazed at this teen that seemed to have been born under a rock. Not only that but he noticed the famished looks on their faces as if they hadn't eaten a meal in days.

"You know you boys look like you could use a good meal. Are you two running away from home or something?"

"Actually, no. We're trying to find our way to a friends of ours." Kouji said, this being his first sentence towards the stranger.

"We'll I'll tell you what, you whooper snappers. It looks like its getting late and you both look like you can use a nice meal. You all can have a roof over your heads for the night at my ol' place."

Both of the twins' eyes widened simultaneously and their mouths gapped open with drool dripping from the side.

"We'll take it!" they both said in desperation.

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**A/N: **eeh! That's all I have to say about that. On a side note… there is no side. Sorry it took a while to update.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **The next chapter of course. Its basically just Kouji and Kouichi. I'm sure for you Takumi fans your gonna skip this...

* * *

**Stay The Night**

So Kouji and Kouichi followed the old man in his dingy red pick up truck that rested a few meters away. Kouji called shotgun (front seat) while Kouichi had to sit in the back of the truck outside. The grown man put the key in the ignition, sputtering to a start. The man drove along the gravel road with his years of experience concerning the terrains. He knew just about where everything was and their whereabouts.

"So you two are trying to get to a friends house you say." The stranger asked with one hand on the wheel and the other on the hand rest on the door.

Kouji glanced at him and back towards the front window. "Well actually it's a friend's grandma's house. We were going there for some tickets or something to a concert." He sounded nonchalant as always as he explained their situation.

"Hm must be some nice friend you have." The old man complemented, "You know I have two grandsons who remind me of you two boys," he paused. He remembered saying this before. "I haven't seen them in a long time since they ran from home. It was just me and my wife taking care of them ever since their parents died in an accident."

Kouji gazed down a bit, feeling somewhat sorry for the man.

Unexpectedly, the truck hit a bump in the road sending Kouichi in the back several feet in the air and back. He landed hard on his rear, which hurt like hell.

"OWW! Watch it!"

"Sorry about that son."

"Geez I swear one of these days I'm going to get the respect I deserve." He mumbled under his breath. This put a mischievous smirk on Kouji's face.

The truck pulled to a sudden stop causing the inertia from all the junk in the trunk (haha) to fall towards Kouichi. The tools and bags bombarded him as they landed on top of his body. .

"OWW!" Kouichi yelped in pain.

"Sorry about that son." The old man apologized again. "It looks like we're here boys."

Kouji got out of the front while Kouichi stumbled out from the back, in pain. He limped as he followed his brother and the old man.

"You know, I don't know if we should trust this man." Kouji leaned back to whisper to his brother.

"Ow, don't you think it's a little too late for that now? Ow!" Kouichi was still in pain.

It was getting dark like the man had said. The twins could see the sun set painting an array of warm colors across the western sky.

The man opened the door and greeted his faithful wife who waited for his return, "Honey, I'm home!"

In a sofa chair, sat an elderly woman who looked about the same age as the man who also wore bifocals.

"Hello dear. It looks like you brought a few friends with you."

"Oh yes hehe. I saw them in the wilderness just lollygagging. I thought I'd bring them home for supper since they probably haven't eaten in a while." He handed the bag with the deer in it to his wife who went off with it into the kitchen.

"I'll see you boys later mkay?" she beamed and went away in the room.

"Please boys, have seat. Make yourselves comfortable while I change up." The old man trotted off into another room for while, leaving them both in the living room to explore the pictures that dressed the maple walls while the fireplace crackled with its flames.

Frame by frame both of the brothers analyzed the pictures of the family. In one picture the old man seemed to be in his earlier years, perhaps thirties, along with his wife, sitting in a pavilion. The sense of mirth and bliss blossomed from the picture itself. Another picture showed the both of them getting married and another with them in a hospital giving birth. In the last picture Kouichi picked it up from its rest to look at it closely. In it were two young boys smiling. They had black hair and dark colored eyes with pale skin. If Kouichi had to guess, they looked like they were in their preteens in the picture. There was also another one with them and the grandparents. The grandsons looked to be in their late teens.

"Wow, what a wonderful family." Kouichi muttered. Kouji acknowledged with an indifferent grunt.

"Yep, those where our grandsons…" the old man appeared from the other room. He was a short man. He came up to Kouji and Kouichi's chin.

"So what happened? Why did they leave?"

"You know…" he scratched his gray bearded chin, "they never did say." He stifled a croak in his throat and sat down in his big comfy chair. Kouji and Kouichi did the same but there was only one other seat available. They both fought over it until Kouji pushed him, making him victor of the throne.

"I see you boys care much about each other. I bet you're always fighting and what not."

"Pfft ah well you bet! He can be _so_ annoying sometimes."

"Whatever! You're the annoying one always hogging seats and stuff."

"I'm not hogging this seat. I got in first!"

"After you pushed me out!"

The two quarreling and bickering amused the old man. It brought back memories for him.

His wife then poked her head in the living room to announce that supper was ready.

"You boys read for dinner."

That question was enough to shut them up and agree for once for the night.

-xxx-

"Eat up!"

Kouji and Kouichi faced a dish of rice, vegetables, and deer meat. Kouichi was mostly a vegetarian so he wasn't sure if he could eat it.

Kouji on the other hand was eating away like there was no tomorrow. Food went flying into his mouth at a hundred and fifty-nine miles an hour. It got all over his face and ears too.

"Is something wrong, boy?" she asked Kouichi. Kouichi snapped out of his despicable look towards Kouji. "OH… nothing!" he chuckled uneasily and started with rice then down to the vegetables. He was now at the dear meat and wasn't sure how to turn it down. He was hungry and could eat about anything right about now.

"Are you going to eat your food?" Kouji pestered him with food dangling from the corner of his mouth.

Kouichi ignored the pig and cut a peace of the meat and held it inches from his mouth. It twitched nervously as it finally entered his mouth. Surprisingly, he had never tasted anything better in so long. It was like what those actors in those televised infomercials that included food always say, "The best thing I've ever tasted". He gulfed down the whole thing in less than five minutes beating his brother who started before him.

"Oh my! You must have been hungry." The lady said, astonished to see such a sight.

Kouichi chuckled timidly, rubbing his belly, as he turned red.

-xxx-

"We'll you must need a place to stay." The couple implied.

"YES!" the twins shouted.

"Perhaps you can use our grandsons' bedroom since they're not here." The old lady suggested.

Kouichi paused for a second. He couldn't possible take "their" rooms.

"That won't be necessary… we won't-"

"HA don't pay any attention to him. He's just being _too_ polite. We'll take it." Kouji shot his brother a mean what-do-you-think-your-doing-I'm-not-sleeping-in-the-forest-TONIGHT look.

The couple showed them the way to the room. The room was dark and quiet with two nice twin beds. They were left the same way since the grandsons had left.

"Well go ahead and sleep for tonight. In fact, you can stay for as long as you like."

"Oh that won't be necessary." Kouichi said, being polite as always, meanwhile Kouji took the bigger and comfier bed while Kouichi paid no attention.

The couple left them alone to catch some sleep for the night. Tomorrow shall be a big day for them.

"You're unbelievable." Kouichi muttered, his brother beaming right at him with a mischievous smile.

With that he went to the restroom to get ready, but before he did he took his jacket off and placed it at the foot of the bed. Neither of them noticed before but there were stuffed animal heads (from mooses to bears) mounted on the wall which would be disturbing to Kouichi once he noticed them.

"You know, Kouji, these people are treating us as royal guest so the least you can do is be more guest worthy." The brother hollered from the opposite side of the bathroom door, the water running.

Kouji ignored him as always as his attention turned towards his brother's jacket. He heard the vibration of the phone. It went off and on like a honeybee that was trapped.

Kouji wasn't one to pry into people business but he had to answer it. He searched the pockets and found the phone.

"Incoming text" read the screen. He opened the message and read it, "How and where are you? I miss you _so much_! *Kisses*"

It was from Zoe. Kouji's eyebrow arched on its own from the ending to the text. She must have been worried sick about him. Really worried sick. In fact, _too_ sick to send such a message.

The door to the bathroom swung open as Kouichi came out ready for bed, "Well I have to admit you sure haven't been nosy with these people's- HEY IS THAT MY PHONE?" he rushed over to see, "You can't just go through my phone without my permission."

"Don't worry. I'm only reading the text Zoe sent you."

"She sent a text?"

"Yep, she wants to know how and where we are, and for some reason she misses you _so_ much. She even added kisses."

"What? You're lying. Give me the phone."

"Nah, I'll just tell her that you're worried sick about her and that you can't wait to meet up with her. Love you. *Hugs and Kisses*" He quickly wrote the text message.

"Wait! Give me that! Don't write that!" he struggled to get the phone from his stubborn brother, but Kouji held it away from his reach.

"Oops I'm about to send it!"

"No you idiot!"

"Oh no my hand is slipping over the send button."

"Stop it! STOP IT!"

"Send."

"You… you! AH!" he jumped onto his brother who was defenseless. He choked the life out of him, literally.

"Get off me. Get off me!" Kouji gasped as the words escaped form his momentarily evil twins death grip.

"What makes you think you can go spending my limited text, HUH!" he continued strangling Kouji, but Kouji finally got the upper hand as he reached for Kouichi's neck and swung him off his body. He ran over to Kouichi and his bed to pounce on him with revenge.

Suddenly the door burst open and a double barrel rifle was pointed in their direction.

"What's going on here!"

The twins looked up at the elderly man and his rifle. They couldn't help but laugh nervously.

"Oh nothing. Were just horsing around." Kouichi snuck a punch in.

"Hehe yeah." Kouji returned a punch of his own.

"Oh, well you boys nearly frightened us. We thought the creature had come to get ya!"

The twins' eyes shot widen open the same time, "CREATURE?"

"Oh yes. It used to come and bother our grandsons, Michael and Geoffrey."

Kouji and Kouichi looked at each other with frightened eyes.

"Oh well then. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite." The man closed the door, leaving the twins in total darkness.

Like lifeless zombies, the two got up from their wrestling match and went to their beds to sleep, not blinking once.

(One hour later…)

"One more stupid beer can on the wall. One more stupid beer. Take one down. Pass it around. No more stupid beer cans on the wall…" Kouichi clenched his pillowcase tightly, singing and doing whatever to stay awake even though his body needed the sleep. "Kouji are you still awake."

"Yeah."

"So you that creature things true?"

"I don't think that man was serious. How could a 'creature' come here? We're perfectly safe." Kouji reasoned with his brother.

"Yeah. But why would he joke to a couple strangers?" Kouichi replied with a thoughtful question of his own.

"I don't know. The guy might actually love tormenting any visitors they have." Kouji said, shifting in his bed covers to face the opposite direction from Kouichi. "Now get some sleep."

"I guess. I guess you're right." Kouichi shifted around, facing the window. His arm hung over to the side where his fingers felt something on the floor. It was a sheet of paper. He thought about taking a look at it but it was too dark. He would check it out in the morning as his eyes felt heavy and began to shut.

It wasn't long before he heard a scratching noise. With his twitching eyes opening ever so slightly, he saw the silhouette of some strange small creature from out the window, with glowing orange eyes looking straight into his soul.

The next second a cacophony of high pitched shrieks came out of Kouichi's mouth, waking up his brother.

"What is it?" Kouji asked, groggy and unaware of his surroundings. "Did something burn?"

Kouichi leaped on to his brother's bed for refuge. "Its there! Its… the creature." He hissed the last bit as fear trembled through his words.

Kouji turned his head slowly to see.

"Man, you're such a scary- OH MY GOSH! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!" suddenly both of them were screaming and jumping around like scared children that just got through watching an unrealistic scary movie.

"Get the gun?"

"What gun. There is no gun!"

"Well then get something!"

"Kouichi reached for a lamp, but Kouji stopped him to turn it on so they could see who their little friend was that was spying on them.

"I don't believe it." Kouji said, surprised and not flattered.

"Oh… its just a raccoon heh-heh." Kouichi laughed uneasily, rubbing the back of his neck. To think they made a fool of themselves.

"WHAT IS IT!" the old man barraged in again with his barrel gun pointing at them. He glanced over at the window. "Oh I see you met 'the creature'."

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **Oh wow that was longer than I had expected. And the next chapter is… you guessed it


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:**Takumi… Yeah that got your attention.

* * *

**Couples' Motel**

After the Cadillac drove off, the couple dusted themselves off and continued their unfolding journey together. In a few hours, the sun would come to a rest for the day, causing them to find a place to rest for the night. The tricky part was how and where. Their chance of finding shelter was just as good as finding a waterfall in the middle of a desert (haha).

"You know…. JP's gonna be pissed if we miss the due date." Takuya mumbled to himself, not minding Zoe who was right beside him.

She did not give it a second thought, "Come on. We have to find a place to sleep."

"A place? Where? In the sand dunes?"

Zoe gave him an enlightened sarcastic look, "Of course dummy. Where else did you think we were going to sleep tonight?"

She took him by surprise.

"No idiot. We'll keep walking till we find a place." She ended with an audible sigh that most teen girls make when dealing with an incorrigible moron. She walked off in the prior direction, with or without Takuya.

"Hey, wait up." Takuya quickened his pace to match hers.

-xxx-

"If you were wondering, that is the 157th cacti bush we passed… Now make it 158." Takuya mentioned. He was not sure if he counted correctly.

Zoe broke down on her knees and cried out to the heavens. "WHYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

Above them, the vultures that were hovering above flew away, frightened by her screams of despair.

"I knew I should have stayed on that train. Why did I get off with him? Why?" she continued complaining, not minding Takuya's presence or the looks he was giving her as if he as going to… tackle her.

"I don't believe it! You still think this is _my_ fault?"

"NO, I don't _think_ it was your fault. I _know_ it was."

"I don't believe this. Unbelievable! You still think it's my fault even though you clearly where ignoring me when I was warning you about the train leaving."

Steam was blowing from his ears.

"No you didn't!"

"Yes, I did!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did NOT!"

"Did TOO!"

"Did not! Not! NOT!"

"Did too! Too! TOO!"

They were inches away from each other's face.

"Ha, you sound like a choo choo train."

Takuya, frustrated in the heat of the argument, covered his mouth as if it would take back what he said.

"Oh don't be sad. I didn't mean to hurt your feelins."

Veins popped out of Takuya's forehead as his mouth tongue-tied by the brutality of her words and sarcasm. Recuperating from the insults, he made a quick glance past her shoulders where he saw a building in the shape of some kind of cheap western motel.

He pointed at it, "There goes your sand dune."

She turned around rapidly as her golden locks whipped him across the face.

"Finally," she shouted ecstatically. She then faced the male with a condescending tone, "Well it looks like you're good for something _after all_." Her slender body jogged towards the motel, leaving Takuya rubbing his whip lashed chin; he grunted.

-xxx-

The couple approached the motel with skeptical looks and unsure steps. It looked small for a motel and didn't seem to be too reassuring, but then again, they did not have much of a choice at this point. They were willing to be settle for anything

"So this is where we'll be staying?" Zoe gave the sign that read "Paradise Inn" an arched eyebrow. The sign then fell over in its oldness. "Ok never mind we'll keep looking elsewhere."

"Nononono… this is perfect. We'll make it work somehow." The brunette reasoned with her, encouraging her to stay. He motioned her to follow him to the door.

She heaved a high-pitched sigh, "This better be good."

They both walked through the door, bells ringing. Behind the front counter was an obnoxious young lady, who looked to be in her late teens, early twenties. She had a low cut tight shirt and some well-figured, faded jeans. Her hair was bundled in a ponytail and was smacking away on bubble gum, as a cow does with its grass. Her head finally peaked above the magazine she was casually glimpsing and then hid behind it again.

Takuya looked at Zoe who was giving him a peculiar look of her own, then back at the secretary who was doing her job as well as a blind taxi driver.

"Excuse me… or us. I … I mean _we_ were looking for a place to stay tonight." Takuya struggled for the words to come out properly.

"Two separate rooms!" Zoe added, but the secretary girl did not budge nor flinch. She continued chomping on her gum and reading her magazine like it was intriguing. She even inhaled a loud snort like a pig.

"Um hello. We're talking to you." Takuya waved his hands in her peripheral vision. When that didn't work, he banged the little bell that laid on the desk, over and over.

Annoyed, this finally got her attention. "Can't you guys read? We're out of rooms. BYE!" she pointed at the sign in the corner that read, "Closed. Out of room".

The couple was both surprised that anybody would stay there with a grouch as her, but fortunately, a man and a woman walked out of a door with bags in hand.

"We're outta here!" the male said. He threw some cash on the desk and left with his woman.

"Good luck." The lady said to Takuya and Zoe as they went out the door. Takuya nor Zoe knew what she meant by that.

"Well it looks like you guys are in luck!" the secretary said in a lighthearted yet bitter tone. "We have one room open."

Zoe sulked, "You don't have _two_ rooms?"

"Nope, sorry hun. I know it must be horrible sharing with him."

Zoe mouthed a "yes".

Takuya disliked the sense of being tagged teamed against by the two females as he continued to bargain with the secretary.

"So how much is it?" the male asked, still feeling threatened by both ladies.

"Weeeeeell…" she flipped a few pages in her magazine, "Since you two are separate, I'll have to charge you both fifty bucks each, but if you were a couple you would get just pay one price." She was still chomping on the gum like molasses.

"Wait! Did you say couple? Hahaha!" Zoe chuckled loudly. She grabbed Takuya to the side. "Just this once we will pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend, OK."

"Oh I can do that!" he said exuberantly, "I mean… sure whatever."

They turned around with a smile on each other's face.

"Actually it turns out we _are_ a couple." Zoe announced.

"Yeah we just have a few fights every now and then." Takuya added.

"And just happen to be in one right now." They both laughed together boisterously, but eyes of scrutiny came from the female behind the counter. She could see right through their horrible non-Oscar worthy performance.

"Really now?" she wondered, showing no sign of humor. Not even a smirk.

"Yep. Isn't that right honey?" Zoe said, giving her "man" a squeeze around his muscle bound waist.

"Uh…yeah… my… snuggle, bunny… foo foo cakes." It was all flowing from his mouth with no meaning or coherence whatsoever.

The phony couple then wrapped an arm around the other, beaming from ear to ear. Takuya jerked as he felt his butt being pinched. He quickly glanced at Zoe peculiarly, and then at the girl behind the desk.

The secretary smacked her gum some more, giving them the stink eyes. Seeing that she could not break them apart, she gave up and gave them the keys to the room.

"Room 7." She blew a bubble and popped it in her mouth.

Takuya and Zoe walked away with forged smiles on their faces as they clung to each other until they were out of her sight. They finally let go of each other and exhaled suddenly from hold their breaths.

"Wow that was awkward." Zoe said brushing her sweaty hair behind her ear.

"Yeah…tsh." Takuya, striding his sides looked, away from her.

"Don't let it get to you're head, Kanabara! I'm still mad at you. And this is all just an act for now until this is over with." With that remark, she took the keys from him and opened the door to the room… like a boss.

"Geez, you don't have to be so bossy ya know."

"I'm not."

The door flung opened and the smell from warm stench bombarded their unready noses.

"Is this is the best they could come up with?" Takuya clenched his nose.

"We'll its bearable. Plus they have beds."

"Bonus."

She slit her eyes at him for a second, while he watched from his side vision.

Fortunately, for them there were separate twin mattresses, well dressed in red plaid sheets.

He ran over to the bed near the window, and leaped on it like the five year old he once was.

"Don't get too comfortable. It's only for one night."

"Hey, one night or all week. I don't mind."

The blond rolled her green eyes at Takuya's lack of responsibility, and right then and there Takuya started snoring.

"Takuya! Its not bed time yet!" she flung a pillow at his feeble head, guarded by his brown shabby hair. He peeked open one of his eyes at her.

"C'mon! I'm tired."

"We have to come up with a plan for tomorrow, dummy."

Takuya sat up and kicked off his shoes, getting a little too comfortable.

"Alright. Here's the plan," he sighed, "Tomorrow morning we leave and go off from there. Goodnight." He thumped his head back on the pillow.

She heaved another sigh. He never did think things through. She recalled him saying once how he didn't like details and how he preferred living in the moment instead. His voice was very audible in her thoughts as she shook her head to rid of the sound of his voice.

"Well, while you go into a coma, I'll go take a nice shower." She smelt a clump of her hair, "Ugh, I feel dirty."

"Because you are." Takuya mumbled under his breath.

"What did you say?"

"Huh nothin'." He closed his eyes again.

She glared for second then dropped her jacket on the bed and headed towards the bathroom.

"Takuya you're a moron. You know that?" she said while strutting into the restroom, closing the door behind her.

Once the door locked shut, Takuya opened his eyes. His mind began to ponder on the whole situation at hand. Here he was in a room with Zoe. His friends are miles away in who knows where, and his phone was not working. JP would kill him if he found out they were in the same room together.

Speaking of cell phones, he pulled out the sleek black device from his pocket, admiring its context. He it was still dead, but the other day he found out he could use it as a useful mirror so he could check to see how his face looked. He placed it back in his pocket and wrapped his arms behind his head, against the pillow.

Turning his head to the left, he could see the sun had already set and the full moon shined accompanied by the symphony of the stars.

_I wonder what the other guys are doing? _

Dying of boredom, he decided to take a tour of the room and its contents. He brushed past a shelf in front of him and the closet that had a few robes and towels folded looked around the room only to realize there was no TV.

"No tv?"

-xxx-

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Zoe turned on the shower and began to lather her body with the scent of lavender soap (what is the smell of lavender?).The gentle soothing sensation of the cold water running down her slim body, felt so sensational and relieving. After this, she knew she would be able to sleep like a baby tonight.

"Oooooo la la la la la la la… Ooo lalalala!" she sang over the sound of the rushing water. Takuya ears shot up. They could not believe what they were hearing. He was not use to hearing Zoe singing, especially with lyrics along the lyrics of "Ooolala". He cursed the fact his phone was dead. He could have used it to record her voice, but instead gave him another idea. His face turned towards her jacket that laid defenselessly on her bed. He made this one exception to look through her stuff. As he ruffled through the pockets, he pulled out the phone and began to record the noises coming from behind the door.

"Ooooooooooooooolala la la laaaaaaaah!"

He stopped himself from laughing out loud. Her singing was like hearing the word "poop" for the first time when you were little (?).

He stopped playing with her phone for a second and decided to put it back. That was before he birthed another mischievous idea. He opened her contact list and searched for Kouichi's number. In the process, he saw that she had already added Jones Petersons number, thuse making him cringe. He finally found his target, Kouichi, and texted a message to him.

"How and where are you? I miss you _so much_! *Kisses*"

He giggled like an evil mad scientist. This would surely be a hoot once he got the message.

He heard the shower stop, and quickly hustled to put everything back where it was.

Out came the blonde in the attire she wore before she went in since she had nothing else to change into.

"You weren't doing anything stupid while I was in there, where you?"

Takuya faked a yawn as if he had been asleep. "Huh, did you say something?" he smacked his lips a few times to emphasize the fact he was waking up from "sleeping" (well played).

"Hmph…nevermind." She had a close eye on the brunette who was known for his notorious antics.

He returned an innocent look of his own and pretended he knew not what she was implying. She lay down in her bed next to his; a nightstand and a lamp separated them both.

The silence between them was deafening. Takuya fiddled his thmbs and Zoe played with her hair. All of this seemed so surreal. They were both in a room together with nothing separating them but their repulsion towards each other.

"You think I should call the twins and see if they are ok?" Zoe finally broke the silence.

"Uh I don't think you would be able to reach them with all the bad signal and stuff." He faced away so he could hide the snicker on his face; still smiling about the prank, he pulled earlier.

"I guess you're right." She placed her coat on the edge of the bed and slipped her fur boots off, which was not a good idea to wear when she first put them on in the morning. She snuggled under the security of her blankets even though it was hot in the room.

Takuya, bearing the heat no longer, got out from the bed and took of his hoodie and black shirt, revealing the muscle shirt underneath. His masculine arms displayed for Zoe to see and admire… secretly.

"What are you doing?"

Takuya turned his neck to face Zoe as he dropped the clothes on a chair nearby. "I'm getting ready for bed." Just then he loosened his belt and was about to remove his jeans when she stopped him.

"Whoa! My eyes! STOP! Keeps your pants on! What are you thinking?"

"What? I have boxers underneath, and why are you looking?" He narrowed his eyes at her, suspiciously.

"I wasn't looking, you just happened to be in my way." She cleverly said in defense.

"Alright, whatever you say. I guess I'll just burn and sweat through out the night." He tightened his jeans back on his waste, "_But_ just so you know," he raised his index finger with defiance, "Back in my room I usually sleep in my boxers and muscle shirt. No pjs, for this guy."

The blond gave him a disdainful before she rolled her eyes. She then closed her eyes to sleep. "Get some sleep, Takuya. I'll deal with you tomorrow."

Moments later, she was sound asleep, looking peaceful as her body laid out with her curves accentuated by her coversheets. She looked cute sleeping there almost next to him.

He snapped out of whatever it was that was getting a hold of him and turned off the lamp, leaving them in darkness. He faced away from her and closed his drowsy eyes for the last time as sleep grabbed a hold of him. Just as he succumbed to slumber, Zoe's eye peeked open to see if he was awake looking at her.

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**A/N: **There goes the Takumi chapter you waited for. Don't you just love Takuya and his silly ways. Well I guess this is the peak of the story. It goes downhill from here. Now off to see what JP and Tommy are up to (and there goes the rest of my views)!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:**

**Trailer Narrator Voiceover:** JP and Tommy have been walking this endless journey since day one. They're still on day one. How will they survive the night, Muahahahaha!

**Me:** Dude, read the script!

**Trailer Narrator Voiceover:** Sorry. Although, it would be nice if I were getting paid good money for this gig you know.

**Me:** Well what did you expect from a broke college student?

**Trailer Narrator Voiceover**: *Sigh* [_directed towards readers_] Just read the story already.

* * *

**A Place to Stay**

Back at the station, JP and Tommy were just making their way out and into the city streets. Unlike the other guys, they had the luxury of being in the city, so they thought. It was time for JP to implement his new plan.

"C'mon Tommy. We're getting a taxi." They both walked to the curb, waving their hand out. "TAXI!" he shouted.

Suddenly, a yellow vehicle pulled up next to them. JP opened the car door and let Tommy in first. He followed after him.

"Where too?" the cab driver asked.

"Cedar Valley."

The cab driver did a double take.

"Are you kidding me? That's the next town. I can't go that far."

JP was shocked. "Well, then how far can you go?"

"No more than 30 miles this area."

"OK, that's how far we'll go."

"What's your destination?"

"I don't know. Just take us somewhere outta here."

"Alright, suit yourself." And so the driver drove off to where ever he could.

-xxx-

JP looked out the window as they passed by people and buildings. He honestly had no clue as to how they were going to sleep tonight. Perhaps a hotel he thought. That was if their rates were not too high.

"JP?" Tommy spoke, "Where are we sleeping tonight?"

JP's face went into a short spasm. It was as if Tommy was reading his thoughts.

He chuckled lightly, "Oh don't worry. I'll find something out." He had to say something in order to make him feel safe and secure under his guidance.

Cab driver couldn't help but over hear their conversation. "It sounds like you too are homeless."

They both looked up at him through the rearview mirror.

"Oh no. Not at all." JP clarified, "You see it's a long story. My friends and I were going to see my grandma for some tickets to a concert…"

The driver arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah I know it sounds stupid, but anyways, we were on our way on the train when all four them had reasons to get off at the next"

The driver nodded with acknowledgement.

"So once they got off they never got back on, so the train left. " he motioned his hands with gestures at the end of every sentence, "And so here we are basically. Trying to meet up with them." He sighed.

"Hm well sorry to here that." Said the cab driver. His eyes resumed on the road. He drove for another ten minutes until he came to a stop.

"How's this place?" the driver pointed at a large building. It was a homeless shelter.

JP and Tommy stared at the driver.

"Hey you two sound like you could use a place to stay tonight."

JP sighed again. He had no other options.

"Fine. How much for the ride."

"Foget about it!"

Both, Tommy and JP eyes shot wide open. It was music to their ears.

"Seriously!" Tommy asked, just to make sure

"Yep. Now hurry up before I change my mind."

They didn't think twice as JP swung the door open and jumped out, Tommy following behind.

The cab drove off and left them there to stay the night.

"You know, Tommy. I never thought I would ever find myself here."

"You say that likes it's a bad thing."

"Oh no! Of course not… I just… let's go inside already." Said JP, avoid answering the question.

-xxx-

The building was about fifty years old. The paint was already coming off and the floors were cracked, but this would have to do for tonight. A lady at the front counter helped them to a room for the night. They were lucky since it was the last room available.

In the room were bunk beds, a sink and poor lighting.

"I guess this will door for now." JP mumbled.

"I'm getting top bunk,.." said Tommy, as he climbed to the top of the bed. JP let him, since he wasn't a fan of heights anyways.

"You know you never know what you got till its gone." Tommy muttered from a top the mattress. He had a point JP realized. They were fortunate to find a place and didn't even know it.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

**A/N: **Behold the shortest chapter I've ever written. I guess you could say this was a filler. In fact, almost all of JP and Tommy's adventures are just fillers. Oh well, see you in the next chapter…


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:**

Here's another adventure with yours truly. the Minamotto brothers. Or is it Kimura brothers. They have different last names so that doesn't help their case.

**Trailer Narrator Voiceover:** I know…

**Me:** He-Hey! Looks like you stuck around after all!

**TNV**: The least I could do.

**Robby** _[after the chloroform poisoning]_: Who is this guy?

* * *

**Hot Pursuit**

Early morning back at where Kouji and Kouichi were staying, the smell of pancakes and muffins filled the air, along with eggs and bacon.

Kouji rose from his sleep subconsciously to see if he could get a bite of what it was they were cooking. He trailed down the halls until he was in the kitchen.

"What's for breakfast?" he mumbled.

The old lady had plates with covers on them. "Take whatever you like."

Kouji's eyes nearly shot out of their sockets. He jumped to the nearest seat with food in front of it and lifted the covers. Just about any breakfast item you could think of, it was on the menu. Eggs, Bacon, Pancakes, Muffins, Orange Juice, Turkey, you name it.

"Yep, she sure does know how to cook up a meal." The old man came from around the corner, buttoning up his shirt. "So where's your brother?"

"He's still sleeping." Kouji barely paid any attention to the question. He grabbed his fork and knife and chomped away.

Meanwhile, in the other room Kouichi woke up, only to see Kouji was missing. His mind started spinning with different scenarios of what could happen, the worst of them being he was abducted or killed.

"Kouji? KOUJI?" he pranced out of bed, still feeling groggy. The words slurred a bit.

"KOUJI!" He panicked, 'Where could he be?"

He saw the taxidermy moose and bears on the wall and screamed, unaware of them before.

He screamed throughout the hallways until he ended up in the kitchen. Kouji had his face stuffed with breakfast, glancing back at the weirdo that just came in.

"Nice of you to join us." The elderly man acknowledged, "Have a seat and eat breakfast."

-xxx-

After eating, the twins prepared for the day as they put the rest of their clothes on. Kouji entered the bathroom to brush his teeth, while Kouichi sat on the bed going through his text messages. He read the one from last night Zoe sent him that Kouji replied to. He too arched an eyebrow with confusion. It did not sound like Zoe at all, asking him how he was then ending it with "Kisses". Something was up, and he could smell it. All he could do now was wait for the reply, placing the phone in his pocket. Suddenly, the phone vibrated as he answered it.

"Hello?"

"Oh hey, good your alive!" it was Zoe on the other end, "Where are you guys?"

"Where at some old dudes house. He let us spend the night."

"That's good to hear!"

"Yeah."

"So you mind tell me what was up with the weird text message with the kisses and stuff?"

Kouichi was taken aback, "What do you mean? You started it! Plus Kouji was the one that replied, not me!"

"No I didn't!"

"Yeah you did! Look for yourself."

Sure enough she did only to find out he was right.

"Well I didn't…" it finally dawned on her while she glared daggers at the air, "write that."

From the tone in her voice, Kouichi could tell she figured it was Takuya and his mischievousness.

"Well its nice to hear from you. And tell Kouji I said high."

"Will do." Kouichi's phone went flat. He could imagine her beating up Takuya for that naughty prank he pulled.

"Who was that?" Kouji's voice echoed from the bathroom, toothpaste in his mouth.

"It was Zoe. She got _your_ message, and she said hi."

"Oh." He spat in the sink.

Kouichi was not surprised by his brother's lack of empathy as usual. As he laid down, his head hit the pillow and in the process, he felt a sheet of paper under his fingertips. It was probably the same note from last night that he did not bother reading.

He picked it up and read,

_Dear Gramps,_

_If you are reading this then you probably are wondering where we are_

_To remind you in advance, you left us at our uncle's house as always. _

_Sincerely, Your grandsons_

Kouichi could not believe what he was reading.

"Kouji, look at this!"

"Huh, what?" Kouji finished then trudged over to the side of his brother with the peculiar note in his hand.

"You can read? Good for you." He clapped, mockingly.

"NO! Read the note!" he shoved into his brother's face. He snatched and read the note for himself.

"Wait, so this means-"

"I know-"

"We need too-"

"Right behind ya."

They were doing that thing most twins do, as if they could read each other's minds.

They burst in the kitchen with the note and handed it to the man. Both of the senior citizens read the note."

"We'll I'll be! I knew I forgot something!"

The twins did a double take, not understand how he could forget his grandsons so easily.

"Pardon my husband. He can be forgetful. He has a short term memory sometimes."

"We'll I need to go down to get them already!" the old man threw on his coat as fast as lightning, and chugged his glass of milk. He paced over to his wife for a kiss goodbye and made his way to the door.

"Wait!" Kouji halted the man in his steps, "Where is this place exactly."

"Just a few miles from here near Cedar Valley."

He glanced at his brother who was already thinking the same thing.

"You mind if we come?" Kouji asked

"You could drop us off and we'll be out of your way." Kouichi added, feeling hopeful.

"Sure I guess. I won't mind."

Both of the brothers smiled in appreciation. "Thanks so much."

-xxx-

"BYE! Take care now!" she waved the twins off, "And comeback safely hun."

The three men waved her off and headed out to the truck. Kouji had this eerie feeling shivering down his spine. Too confirm it, he saw a Cadillac parked a few yards away, knowing it was _them_.

"Kouichi, don't look now but it looks like those guys found us."

Of course Kouichi still looked, and shrieked on the inside.

"I told you not to look."

(Meanwhile in the car…)

"Hey, look Brock. If it isn't those two again!"

"I'll be damned, Melvin. It looks like we're in luck!"

(Meanwhile on the outside…)

"Um mister… what's your name again." Kouichi asked in mid-sentence.

"Oh its Matthew!"

"Matthew, we're in trouble-well not trouble trouble-I mean were not in trouble with the law or anything, were just in a big mess because-"

"He's trying to say that two guys have been chasing us and they're right now waiting for us in that Cadillac." Kouji cut his brother of who was rambling on like a rambling mess.

The old man, who is now known as Matthew, looked at the Cadillac. "OH dear."

"Yeah, and we have to go… NOW!"

"Well what are we waiting for?" Matthew rhetorically asked. A sense of youth and thrill entered his body as he jolted towards the truck like a born again teenager with unlimited energy, Kouji and Kouichi following close behind.

"Shotgun!" Kouji cried, as he jumped through the window into the front passenger seat like a ninja.

Kouichi jumped into the back of the truck. "No fair, you always get, shotgun."

The Cadillac revved its engine as it came charge towards them.

"Hurry! Hurry! HURRY!" Kouichi screamed like a little girl.

The old man jumped into his seat, jammed the key in the ignition, and revved the engine to a screeching start.

"Buckle your seatbelts boys! Its gonna be a bumpy ride!" the man floored the gas peddle and sped off with tires grinding against gravel.

"I don't have a seatBEEEEELT!" Kouichi fell to the floor of the trunk with a thud.

"Brock, what ah ya doin! Don't lose 'em!" Melvin ordered.

Matthew's skill in driving was unmatched. He maneuvers were those as skilled as a Nascar driver that had not lost his or her touch all these years.

"You know I use to driver in the country derby when I was young."

"Good to know!" Kouji shouted over the sound of chaos coming from the engine, the following vehicle and Kouichi screaming.

"I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die!"

"SHUT UP, KOUICHI!"

"EASY FOR YOU TO SAY, MR. I-CALL-SHOTGUN-EVERYTIME-AND-DON"T-SHARE!" the truck hit a bump, causing him to fall over. He regain his balance and sat up, "Yeah, WHILE YOU'RE THERE TELLING ME TO SHUT UP, I'M DOGING BULLETS FROM HITTING ME!" he fell over again from the swerving of the truck.

Despite how fast the truck was going, the Cadillac still was catching up as they shifted to higher gear.

"Dammit! They're gaining on us!" Kouji cursed, "Can this thing go any faster?"

Matthew looked at him with glint of hope in his eyes…"Nope!"

"WE'RE SCREWED!" Kouichi suddenly yelped.

In the heat of the whole situation, the man finally came to a shocking realization.

"You know, now I remember! You two must have been the ones that I saw get kidnapped

back at the train station!"

Kouji barely remember that incident since it happened so fast, but he did recall the old man.

"So that was you in the stall!"

"Yep I remember now!"

"I knew there was something familiar about you!" Kouichi over heard their conversation.

A gunshot suddenly broke off the their discussion. From Kouichi's front row view he saw Melvin with half of his torso out of the car firing away at them. His aim was terribly off.

"DAMN MY LUCK! HE'S GONNA SHOOT ME FIRST!"

"NOT ON MY WATCH!" Matthew swerved ninty degrees onto a forbidden dirt road.

"You know what you're doing?" Kouji asked.

"NOPE!"

He veered left and right to shake off the pursuing vehicle as more bullets whizzed by them. One bullet damaged the back windows, but no one was harmed.

"SO WHAT DID YOU YOUNGENS DO TO PISS 'EM OFF?" Mathew asked with his hands multi tasking on the wheel and stick.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Kouji shrugged, "THEY SAY THAT THEIR BOSS BEENS LOOKING FOR US, BUT WE DON'T KNOW THEM OR WHO THEY COULD BE TALKING ABOUT!"

His hair blew in the wind, looking out the window to see their pursuers.

Kouichi was not going to be dead turkey by the end of this chase he said to himself. In hysteria, he grabbed whatever items he could find to toss over to barricade and slowdown the Cadillac. Bags of weight and jars were frantically shoved overboard, and the driver of the Cadillac was forced to juke and jive every one of them.

The old man hollered from inside, "HEY! Don't throw everything away!"

Kouichi was in a frenzied state, doing whatever he could to get rid of their pursuers.

"Dammit, Brock! Can you stop swerving so much! I'm tryina aim heah!"

"Well I'm tryina doge all these things they're throwin at me!"

The dirt road was running short as grass took its place. Up a few meters ahead lied the end of the road… off to a steep and rocky abyss.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Hey Matt! You see that cliff up ahead right?" Kouji asked, reassuring his safety and livelihood that lied in the elder's hands.

"Yep!"

Kouji stared at him to see if he would flinch after realizing they were going over the edge.

"You do realize we should stop then, right?"

"Sorry kiddo! You wanted to get away from these guys and that what I plan to do!" he put the engine in full throttle without holding anything back.

"ARE YOU CRRRAZY! YOU'LL KILLS US ALL!"

"Don't worry." Mathew sounded calm under tremendous pressure.

"What's going on?" Kouichi yelled from the outside, ducking from any unbiased bullets.

"HE'S GONNA JUMP THE CLIFF!"

This was not good news to Kouichi. "NOOOOOOOOOO! I'M GONNA FLY OUT OF THIS THING MAN!"

"Yeah and how old is this thing? Kouji wondered.

"About forty years! NOW HOLD ON TO YOUR BREAKFAST!"

Suddenly, everything went in slow motion as the truck leaped off the rugged cliff into the air, like the "Dukes of Hazard". The twins' hearts were in their throats, and their stomachs turned upside down doing summersaults in the circus. It was all a blur as items floated around like there was zero gravity. In the process Kouichi jammed his body through the rear window as much as he could for safety.

The truck was half way over chasm as Kouji looked out the window to get a birds eye view. Before they knew it, with a crashing thud, the truck landed on the other side with just a few dings and scratches.

"Forty years and this truck still served me well!" Matthew patted the outside of the door like a faithful dog.

Kouji and Kouichi moans of relief became chuckles of joy, to outburst laughter of triumph. They looked back to see, and sure enough, the enemy was far away on the other side, reluctant to follow as their vehicle abruptly halted.

"You really had us going there." Kouichi joked, holding his sides from pain.

"Yeah I thought we were goners." Kouji breathed heavily.

"Told you you had nothing to worry about! I've been doing that for as long as I've had this little beauty!" he acknowledged the trucks value for what it was worth as they sputtered away to freedom.

"You should have told us sooner." Said Kouji. His mind as well as Kouichi's was still spinning.

After a few miles on the dirt road they past what seemed to be an inn. The dirt and dust that followed them and their truck sprayed a couple that was standing in front of the inn.

A cheer howled form the three men. They could careless at this point since they just cheated deaf almost.

Little did they know that the couple they smothered in dirt, resembled Takuya and Zoe.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**A/N: **Oooooo the suspense. Yeah the whole chapter felt random, especially the old man forgetting his grandsons and what not, but it helped move the story along, along with the car chase in the end. For you Takumi fans, your chapter is next so stay tuned… tune tune… tune tune tune tuned!


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** Unfortunately, I have to quit this story since it doesn't seem to be working out anymore. So with that being said, goodbye and farewell… SIKE!

**Trailer Voiceover Guy:** You should have saved that for an April fools joke.

**Me **_[after having a good laugh]_**:** Yeah, I should have.

**Jack:**… No really, who is this guy?

* * *

**A Rude Awakening**

"Takuya, wake up," said Zoe, gently shaking Takuya to a pleasant awakening.

"Why?" he asked, mumbling words in his sleep. He smacked his lips from morning after taste.

"Remember that thing with JP we had to go to?" she reminded.

"Forget JP," said the young teen. Finally, he woke up with Zoe only kissing distance away from him. She was sleeping along right beside him with a smile on her face.

"Morning sleepy head…" she slowly reached over to give him a kiss when… he woke up from his brief dream sequence by an annoy clock alarm that blared at high pitch. Its treacherous dinging was enough for Takuya to break the device as his hand slapped the stop button.

"The worst sound in the world," Takuya muttered with his face against the pillow, "Curse you Freud!" Turned out he actually learned something his past psychology class and the theories of the subconscious mind.

_What was that all about? _He thought to himself. His head slowly lifted from the pillow, grogginess still set in his eyes. He still had his eyes shut as he reached over to wake up Zoe.

"Zoe…Zoe…" he shook her gently till she woke up.

"Takuya, leave me alone." she pleaded, still feeling sleepy herself, "I need my beauty sleep."

By now Takuya was fully awake from his attempts towards waking up the sleeping beauty.

"Zoe, come on." The brunette finally stood up, hovering over her bed, continually shaking her gentle body. Her skin was some how cool and soft like that of a newborn, despite the hot temperature.

"Five more minutes, please." She moaned. Her head shifted to the opposite side away from him.

"Come on, Zoe! If there's anyone that would _love _to still be sleeping right now, its _me_!"

She left Takuya no choice with her stubbornness. In order to suddenly wake her up, he pulled the covers off of her, only to reveal her pink and white striped panties that she secretly wore underneath the blanket. To top it off, they had a graphic of a bunny on them.

Takuya's rude awakening was enough to fully wake her up as she glared at him then shrieked to the top of her lungs. The moron's eyes nearly burst out of their sockets as he fell on the floor, holding up his hands in defense.

"NONONO! I'M SOOO SORRY I DIDN'T KNOW, HONESTLY!"

Her screams continued echoing throughout the room as she fell over the bed on the opposite side. Takuya's face was red, but Zoe's was redder when she peaked her head up from behind the mattress.

"Takuya, your so oblivious!"

"What? I didn't know you weren't wearing any pants when you went to sleep."

"Very funny. You didn't see my jeans right there in front of you?"

Sure enough her jeans were under his shoe in front of him. He chuckled nervously.

"Oh… how'd that get there?"

She groaned, "Ugh just hand me my pants, will you."

He picked up the pair of jeans like an infected diaper with his fingertips.

"Oh stop. Its not like I have fleas you know!" she scratched her hair as she snatched her pants from him.

Takuya gave her the peculiar look. "Hey, weren't you complaining about me stripping down to my boxers last night anyways? How come you get to though? That's not fair!"

"Don't turn this around on me. I was hot last night, and I couldn't bare it anymore!" She made grunting noises while she stood up, struggling to put her jeans back on. "Look away now."

Takuya did what he was ordered, looking away in embarrassment. "Soooo now what? We stayed the night, so what should we do?"

"That was what I was trying to explain to you last night, but you didn't want to listen." Because her jeans were a size too small, she barely had them mid thigh before she started wrestling with them. She failed to remember the reason why she chose to buy such tight jeans.

"You ok?" Takuya joked. He couldn't help from all the noise she was producing.

"Yes, I'm just FINE!" she fell over on her rear end.

"Are you sure? You sound like your wrestling a bear back there."

"SHUT UP! You try wearing jeans that barely fit! NYAAAH, SONOFACUSTARDBISCUIT!"

She made a weird, loud, noise of triumph at the end, when she finally zipped the zipper and buttoned the button. At last, success was reach as she patted her hips.

"Do you go through this every morning?" Takuya wondered as he turned around to see the results.

She placed her hands on her hips. "Do you really wanna know?" she asked, rhetorically, gazing at the boy with an I-can't-believe-you-asked-that-question kind of look.

Takuya remained silence as he headed for the bathroom. He knew what that "look" meant.

"I'll just take a quick shower now. We have a long day ahead of us after all." With that, he disappeared behind the door.

As the young man left, Zoe placed her jacket back on, even though it was still hot. Her hand ruffled through her pockets until they found what they were looking for, her cell phone. She noticed it had been on for a long time, which was not good for battery that could give up any moment. She checked through her messages and saw one particular from Kouichi. She was happy to know that he was still within communicating terms. She contorted her face when she read the message.

Takuya just came out of the bathroom after an extremely quick shower, his hair still wet.

He noticed her reading the message and chuckled, unaware to her knowing.

She then dialed the number to talk to Kouichi to clarify.

"Hello?" Kouichi said on the other end.

"Oh hey, good you're alive! Where are you guys?"

"Where at some old dudes house. He let us spend the night."

"That's good to hear!" Zoe said, unsure if she should really be happy for them since they were with a stranger.

"Yeah."

"So you mind tell me what was up with the weird text message with the kisses and stuff?"

Kouichi was taken aback, "What do you mean? You started it! Plus Kouji was the one that replied, not me!"

"No I didn't!"

"Yeah you did! Look for yourself."

Sure enough she did only to find out he was right.

"Well I didn't…" it finally dawned on her while she glared daggers at the air, "write that."

From the tone in her voice, Kouichi could tell she figured it was Takuya and his mischievousness. Takuya silently listened in on their conversation, holding back laughter.

"Well its nice to hear from you. And tell Kouji I said high."

"Will do." the phone went flat.

She spun around towards Takuya who was eaves dropping.

"Takuya! What where you thinking using my phone like that?" She slapped him several times for the naughty prank he pulled.

"Hey it was just a joke, geez!" he held his arms up as a shield from her onslaught of slapping. He made a break for the door but she was able to land a slap across the back of his head.

"Ow… that hurt." He rubbed his neck.

"What ever. I barley tapped you." She smacked him one last time for remembrance.

-xxx-

Back at the front desk, the same secretary from yesterday sat behind her desk, chewing the same gum, reading the same magazine, with the same nonchalant attitude.

When Takuya and Zoe walked up to the desk, she actually lowered her magazine to see who it was. It was an improvement.

"So how was your stay? Did you find it nice?" she asked the couple, not that she really cared.

"Yeah it was alright…"

"Oh it was wonderful!"

The two noticed their difference in choice of words and suddenly changed them.

"I mean it was the best experience in a long time!" Takuya corrected.

"Yep, he's such a cutie when he's… sleeping." Zoe complimented, with a fake smile of her own.

Takuya wrapped his arms around her waste and Zoe did the same. He slowly lowered his hand and squeezed her butt as a response to what she did to him yesterday. She jerked then looked up at him, giving him the fakest smile imaginable. He knew he was going to get punished later.

"Now why don't you two kiss already?" The desk lady suggested.

Takuya gulped, "Oh boy."

The two were taken off guard.

"Oh that won't be necessary. We don't want to… gross you out." Zoe lied.

"Do it! That's the only way I'll believe you two, cause your acting is as good as a bunch of children in a school play." The secretary demanded.

Takuya and Zoe were stumped; everything was going according to plan until now.

They both looked at each other, gazing into the others eyes as they trembled. They didn't know how to pull this off except actually do it.

Their lips slow moved towards each other for what seemed like an eternity. When they had finally gotten a few inches from each other, they closed their eyes hoping for the drama to be over.

'Stop, I was just kidding." The lady said,

They both stopped abruptly, as they opened their eyes.

"I know you two are only friends. I wouldn't want to do _that_ to ya."

They both stepped away from each other with relief after hearing those words.

"Then why let stand here acting like… imbeciles!" Zoe exclaimed.

"Cause it was funny," she simply replied, smacking her gum, "I could use the humor ya know. I live in the middle of nowhere. Don't you think I deserve some sort of excitement in my life?"

"Oh…" Takuya replied as Zoe stood in silence her self. They never really thought of the fact she was right; she does live in a deserted area with hardly any company, which would explain the no exuberance in her attitude.

"So then why did you let us in?" Zoe asked.

"I just thought you guys could use a place to stay."

The couple stood there, somewhat dumbfounded yet in admiration of her shocking sense of generosity.

"Now hurry up and pay the bill and stop standing there!"

Takuya reached to pay with a hundred dollar bill.

"No, a deals a deal. You only pay the couples price."

The two, relieved again, were happy to pay the couple's price. She was not such a stuck up person after all.

"Now get outta here," she swatted the desk with her rolled up magazine, "And don't comeback here again."

They hoped she was joking as they left the premised, with a sense of relief and gratitude.

Once they were outside the heat from the sun hit them like a ton of bricks. The two walked side by side in silence due to the incident earlier with the whole kissing thing.

"Sooo…now what?" the brunette asked as they approached the side of the road. His face was sweaty as he took his cap off to wipe his forehead.

Zoe looked down on the screen of her phone as it went dead from lack of battery life. "Dang it. Now we have no way of communication."

To what seemed to be their luck, a speeding truck from a distance was blazing at incredible speed.

Takuya thought this would be a perfect opportunity to hitch a ride once again, and hopefully this time they would be lucky.

As soon as he reached his arm out the truck flew by without stopping, sending debris of dust and dirt all over the two.

Immediately they spat and coughed the dirt that entered there mouth as they watched the truck drive on by. They could hear a bunch of hoots and laughter coming from the truck, and if they could see better, it looked like Kouichi was in the trunk.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **That's all folks. Nope, no witty comment here... Just us chickens.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** What a plain title wouldn't you say?

* * *

**The Train**

It was morning back at the homeless shelter, and JP and Tommy were waking up to the smell of breakfast. The kitchen was full with men and women serving breakfast items in the cafeteria. If anything, both Tommy and JP were perhaps the last people to accept a meal.

"I would say we should leave but, my stomachs telling me to stay." His stomach grumbled loudly with a mind of its own. Tommy's belly responded with a growl of its own.

"That does it," JP marched in to the cafeteria, Tommy following behind.

After they received their tray of food they found an opening seat with other homeless people as well.

One man had gray hair and fingerless gloves. He was chomping away as if he had not seen a meal in weeks, which would probably be the truth. With a quick break from shoving food in his mouth, he noticed the two young teens sitting next to him which was a shock.

"What brings you two here? You guys look new."

JP was caught off guard. "Oh we don't usually come here. It was just for last night. We needed a place to stay when we were separated from out friends."

The stranger nodded his head with comprehension I see.

"So how long have you been here?" Tommy asked. JP was not sure if it was polite for him to ask that.

"Hm lets see…" the man counted on his fingers as he recalled events that took place for him to remember." I'd say about five years."

Both JP and Tommy's eyes widened. "That's a long time."

"Yeah but you get us use to it.' He shrugged and then shoved a mouthful of cereal into his mouth, thus ending the conversation.

JP faced his food and ate what he could to sustain him.

"So Tommy, here's the plan. I've been thinking long and hard…"

The man next to them giggled, nearly choking on a biscuit.

Neither JP nor Tommy saw what was funny.

"Like I was saying, I've been think, and the only way to get to Cedar, would be to take plenty of hitch rides from here to there. Tommy nodded his head.

"No you wouldn't…" the man interrupted again. This was becoming a habit, as JP and Tommy faced him again.

"I don't know why you need to go to Cedar Valley, but all you have to do is take the train."

"I know but the train station has been under construction recently. That's why we are here."

"No no, it was on the tv this morning. They fixed it and public transportation is on a rise again."

JP shot up from his seat. "Really, thanks so much for the info."

"Yeah thanks a bunches!" Tommy added.

The stranger nodded his head and continued eating, "No need."

Both of them sprinted out the door to find out for themselves. If it were true then they would be at Grandma's house in no time.

-xxx-

It was true after all, the trains were back online, business booming as usual. JP jammed his fingers into his pocket to see if he had enough change to get two train tickets. To his fortune he did and now was his chance as the train was coming in for another stop.

"Quick, come on Tommy!" he grabbed the young mans hand and ran to the nearest ticket dispenser. He jammed the coins in the slot and watched as lights flicker like casino lights. Low and behold two tickets popped out as JP's hand swiped them from the opening.

Meanwhile, the train that had come to a stop earlier was about move on to its next destination. The sound of steel against steel grinding was heard throughout the station as the train maneuvered forward.

"Come on the train is leaving us!" JP jet off faster than anytime he had ever ran before.

"Wait for me!" Tommy shrieked, holding on to his hat as he struggled to keep up, which was a shocker.

The doors the train were closing, but JP managed to slither his way inbetween and Tommy the same. He was panting heavier than JP was as if he had asthma.

"Don't… do… that again."

"Do…what?"

"You… nearly… left me… back there!"

"Sorry buddy." Those words reminded JP about the others. How were they doing and were they still ok. He flipped his phone out and called Zoe, whom he knew had connection to him.

"Come on pick up already." JP tapped the phone with his finger while he looked for a seat to sit down. The phone call never went through as the phone went dead. "Dang it! What could she have happened to her phone?" He dialed Kouichi's number, hoping he would pick up also. There was no luck with him either.

"Dammit." He cursed. What was up with the disconnection? The people around him looked up from their phones and gave him a peculiar look.

"You should watch your language, around your brother, young man." One lady said to him, to be quite frank.

JP could only shake his head. Tommy was not his brother, but people could not tell for whatever reason. Not only that, but he could not get a hold of his friends… or were they his friends after all to begin with?

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

**A/N: **So yeah, the train is working again. I just hope I haven't developed any plot holes… every storytellers worst nightmare. I hate continuity.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** I would have updated a lot sooner, but I was lazy… and fanfiction had technical difficult for me lately. With that aside, enjoy.

* * *

**The Roaring Rapids**

While JP and Tommy caught up with the train, Kouji and Kouichi were still riding with Matthew after the rat chase that took place earlier. The setting around still looked like a desert. Either they were heading in the wrong direction or there was still more clay dirt to get through.

"So you boys no where you're going to be going from here on out?"

"Not really?" Kouji replied.

"Well I'll wish you the best of luck on your journey."

"Thanks. It was a pleasure letting us stay the night and eat you food." Kouichi replied on his brother's behalf.

A few minutes later, they approached what seemed to be a farm out in a secluded area. They pulled into the unpaved driveway, but no one came out of the house to acknowledge them.

'Well we're here." The old man stopped the truck and opened his door. Kouji and Kouichi followed close behind even they did not have to.

The door to the front porch suddenly opened, and out ran two young men who must have been his grandsons. They ran up to the old man to give him a warm hug. The young men looked exactly like the boys they saw in the pictures back at Matthew's house.

"You need to stop forgetting about us." One of the boys politely scolded.

"Now, you know how bad my memory is, Michael." Matthew reminded his oldest grandson.

"Yeah, but you do not have to forget all the time." Geoffrey, the youngest one, joked.

Meanwhile, Kouji and Kouichi watched them from the bottom of the porch.

Acknowledging their presence, Matthew introduced the four boys to each other.

"Michael and Geoffrey, this is Kouji and Kouichi. Kouji and Kouichi, this are my two grandsons, Michael and Geoffrey."

They exchanged their greetings. Unfortunately the twins had to leave them to attend their own matters.

"It was nice to meet you guys," said Kouichi.

"'Yeah, but we have to get going." Kouji added, gesturing with hands as he pointed the other direction.

"Alright now, you guys take care now!" Matthew waved them goodbye.

"We wish you the best of luck." The grandsons added.

Kouichi and Kouji waved their hands in dismissal as they walked away into the distance like two partners in crime with a dramatic exit.

(**BGM:** Wanted Dead or Alive by Bon Jovi)

-xxx-

"He seemed like a nice man, letting us spend the night at his house, and also letting us drive with him to his grandsons," said Kouichi with a complacent smile on his face.

"Yeah, not to mention getting us away from that car chase back there." Kouji replied.

The two walked in silence for about an hour, ignoring the heat that boiled them on the road. It never occurred to them how much of a good idea it would have been to remove their jackets, since it was not cold.

Kouichi fidgeted through his pocket and brought out his phone, inclined on calling someone to update their status. "You think I should call Zoe or JP and tell them how were doing?" Those were his only two options considering they were the most likey to answer since this whole thing started.

"There's nothing stopping you."

The brother dialed Zoe's number but there was no response. "Her phone isn't responding."

He dialed JP's number, but got the same response as well.

"You mean we're stranded out here? We can't tell anyone that we are still alive!" Kouichi yelled at his phone as if it were capable of answering his rant.

"Looks like your phone isn't so reliable after all." Kouji smirked.

"Shut up. This is serious. If something were to happen to us. No one would hear of it."

"You see. That's your problem. You worry too much," said Kouji jabbing his finger at him, "You need to relax and chill out. Nothing's going to happen to us-"

Instantaneously, a gunshot blazed past them, leaving an unsettling feeling in their stomachs. From afar off a haunting Cadillac blazed down the road, dust trailing in its waking path.

"You won't get away from us dis time, punks!" Melvin –in the passenger's side- yelled with his upper body hanging out from the window.

"Shit! They found us!" Kouji loudly cursed. They broke into a run for their lives, which was all they could do at this point.

"Yeah right, I thought you said _nothing_ was going to happen to us?"

"Well I lied… I spoke too soon!"

Their feet carried them as fast as they could on the side of the road. They were running out of options of what to do to out maneuver the enemy.

"Why do they keep finding us? Its like they're the terminator and they won't stop at nothing!" Kouichi said.

Both of the twin's feet could not out run the Cadillac and they had to think of something quick before they were captured or worse dead.

"Melvin… you're not really going to kill them right?" Brock asked, making sure his partner did not loose his mind.

"Of course not! I'll just wound them a lil."

Meanwhile, Kouji broke off to the side of the road down a lonely path without his brother.

"Hey, wait for me!" Kouichi cried. He was a few meters behind keeping up with his younger kin.

"How bout you keep up!"

Up ahead lied what seemed to be another cut off. At this point they could use a break with all the dead ends.

"Oh please don't tell me there's another cliff!" Kouichi pleaded, but to his dismay, they came to the end of the road and to what seemed like a steep abyss with a river at the bottom.

"Look!" Kouji pointed at nearby bridge that was old enough to have experience violent trauma over eons of years. The ropes were withering and the planks were rotten to the core. They had to make a decision and time was not of the essence. As Kouji took a step out onto the rickety bridge, Kouichi withdrew, unsure of whether he could trust his instincts.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm getting away!"

"That bridge could collapse any moment."

Kouji glimpsed past Kouichi's shoulder, seeing whether anyone was coming yet.

"Well, it beats standing there waiting for them to catch us."

"I'm not getting on that bridge!"

"Are sure about that."

"Yes!"

"Are you sure you're sure?"

"YES!"

"Is that your finally answer?"

"What is this? Who wants to be Kouichi right now?"

"Suit your self then!"

Suddenly the menacing vehicle came around the corner like a runaway locomotive. There was not more than a few seconds to make a split decision, forever changing their lives. After Kouichi heard the enemy coming he had second thoughts.

"On second thought…what the heck!" he dashed over to Kouji's side and put one leg over the rail.

"Hey what are you doing? Are you sure want to jump?"

"HELL NO!"

Looking down from several feet above, they could see the waves from the river rushing down like roaring rapids, a watery, fierce stampede.

Kouji followed his brother's lead and before they knew it, they propelled themselves overboard, down the steep slope, screaming to the top of their lungs. They landed into the rushing river with a large splash as the waves carried them away down stream.

Gasping for breath, the twins emerged their heads out of the water. Their hands frolicked desperately to get their bodies to land.

Up on the top of the canyon, Melvin slammed his hand on the hood of the car, realizing their opportunity slipped them by again like fish off a hook.

"Dammit! We nearly had them!" he kicked the side of the tires.

Simultaneously, Brock's cell phone rang.

"Yo Melvin… It's the boss!"

Melvin groaned loudly. "Gah, now what does he wan't, huh?" he snatched the phone, and answered courteously.

"Ahem, yes boss?"

"Have you found them yet?" a deep mysterious voice resonated from the other end.

"We're still working on it." Melvin laughed nervously.

"Well hurry up! I paid good money to hire you two, so don't let me down!" the phone clicked, leaving Melvin in anguish.

"Daaaah! He's outta his mind! Catching these two is no ordinary cat and mouse chase." He hung up, shoving the cellular device in his coat pocket.

"You mean like Tom and Jerry?" Brock replied in his dopey voice.

Melvin scornfully looked at him, "Yes, like Tom and Jerry!" he stormed off to the car after he slapped his partner up beside the head.

"I still don't get any respect ad all!"

-xxx-

Kouichi and Kouji gasped for air as the frigid waters relentlessly shoved them too and fro down the river. Up ahead laid a thunderous waterfall. The inevitable was just around the riverbed.

"Kouji! Kouji!" Kouichi called out his brother's name out of fear and desperation as he fought the cold waves of water, "Kouji! Where are you?"

Out of the water, emerged Kouji's head once again. His hair flailed in the air, as he searched around for his brother.

"KOUJI!"

He turned around to see his brother, who was worried about him.

"My bandana!" he cried, as if it were his greatest concern.

"That's the last thing you should be worried about!" Kouichi pointed a finger at the cut off up ahead.

With quick reflexes, Kouji reached for a sturdy rock that separated the roaring rapids. With his other hand he pleaded for Kouichi's hand. Kouichi quickly latched on to it, holding for dear life. The two of them were pushed by the resilient current which was several times stronger than them. Kouji could not hold on longer as his fingers slipped one by one.

"Kouji, whatever you do… don't let go!" Kouichi said, on the other end of his brother's hand.

"Easy for you to say," Kouji grunted in between his clenched teeth, realizing it was only a matter of time before he either let go of his own skin and blood or the rock. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"Kouichi…" there was a dramatic pause from the bandana-less boy, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to let go."

Kouichi shrieked, "What! You can't do this to me! I'm your brother."

"It's the only way for us to survive."

Kouchi's eyes began to shake as nearly filled with tears. "Kouji…" he whispered.

Kouji looked the opposite way, squinting his eyes. As his hand tired out, he released the sturdy rock… letting both of them plummet down to the bottom of the waterfall.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

**A/N: **Dunh! Dunh! Dunh! Now there's a cliff hanger for ya… literally. XD


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** I present to you… Takumi!

* * *

**Burning Bridges**

After the sand attack back at the front of the inn, Zoe and Takuya continued walking along the side of the road in awkward silence. For some reason they were acting weird around each other, perhaps because of the countless times Takuya made a fool of himself. Or maybe it was because of the embarrassing situations that took place back at the inn.

To break the ice, Takuya asked Zoe if she was feeling all right, just to make sure there was no tension between the two of them.

"Of course I'm alright! What kind of a question is that?"

"Hey I was just asking. I just wanted to make sure there were no hard feelings about anything."

Zoe glanced at him, "And by anything, you mean what happened back at the inn?"

"Whoa he-hey, who said anything about that?" Takuya's hands immediately went up defensively, "I was just talking about this whole experience in general. I know its been hard."

The blond sighed, "Don't worry Takuya. I'm practically used to your antics, so most of the things you do don't surprise me."

Takuya was relieved.

"But don't get too happy… I will have my revenge." Her tone became dark with the last words as she laughed a mischievous laugh. "Mwaahahahahaaaa!"

She strutted off, leaving Takuya in a state of unsettling fear. She was just kidding right, he thought.

-xxx-

Moments later, the two of them had their jackets shielding them from the gust of wind bowing clay dirt into their faces. Unfortunately for Takuya, not only the sand but Zoe's hair was whipping him across his face. He lowered the goggles on his head (the ones rarely used) over his eyes to better protect himself from the onslaught of punishment.

"I bet you wish you had these cool goggles like me." Takuya bragged. Zoe, after staring daggers, grabbed the edge of his goggles and yanked them, releasing them like a sling shot, nearly knocking Takuya unconscious.

Takuya yelled in pain over the sound of the hissing wind, "Ooooow! What the hell was that for?"

"Told you I'd get you back. But don't worry. I'm not done." Those last words haunted the boy. The pain from the goggles nearly brought him to tears, yet he could not cry.

As the gust stopped, Zoe could see the pain in his eyes.

"Aaaw, I'm sowy. Are you gonna cry?" her hands were on her knees, as she slightly bent over, facing him like a mother would do when speaking baby talk to a child.

"That's not funny. That hurt. There could have been some serious repercussions," He sprang after her, but she swiftly dodged to the side.

She stuck her tongue out at him and made an insulting moan like child would do while saying the words "nana nana booboo".

As immature as it was, Takuya's eyes shot like mad bulls. His nose flared as steam exhausted from them.

"That's it missy. You asked for it." He threatened as he ran after her like cat and dog or dog and cat… and sometimes mouse.

She already anticipated his retaliation and sprinted off in the opposite direction from her goggled chaser. She was faster than him once her adrenaline kicked in, so fast, that she nearly left Takuya behind in the dust.

"Just wait till I get my hands on you!" Takuya yelled in between his panting. Zoe on the other hand was giggling at his silly, futile attempts.

They both turned onto a dirt road that led to nowhere.

"I have you cornered now!" he could smell success at hand.

Zoe disappeared behind a few leaves of branches as Takuya followed close behind her. As he knocked the twigged leaves out of the way, he noticed that Zoe had abruptly stopped in her place. He too stopped suddenly or else he would have knocked into her, which would not end so well considering his circumstances with her. He considered himself lucky that she would even let him chase her this far.

Just as he was about to ask her why she stopped, he soon realized why as he nearly knocked them both off the cliff to the roaring river billow.

Takuya stood to the side of her, slowly raising his goggles above his eyes to take in the beauty of the steep canyon and the sound rushing water below.

"Wow," was all Takuya could say.

Zoe stayed quiet in awe as well. She noticed that on the other side laid their continued path to their destination.

"We have to get on the other side." Takuya pointed out.

"Yeah, but how?" the blond asked.

Takuya analyzed the landscape and noticed an old bridge that connected the two sides.

"I guess we should cross that." He pointed at the old link to both sides. However, Zoe did not agree with his unsafe idea, seeing how dangerous it would be to cross an old bridge that had not been used in decades. No bridge walking has ever ended pleasantly in the history of bridge walkings throughout media.

"I'm not getting on that thing!" she said with defiance as she watched Takuya jog over to the ancient overpass.

"Come on. What's there to be scared of? It's just a couple of years old" the brunette walked over to the opening of the bridge and stepped on the first plank… sending it down to its untimely death. Luckily, he did not go along with it as well. Looking back at Zoe, he grinned sheepishly and chuckled.

"I guess this thing is older than I thought," he scratched the back of his head, "but no need to worry for I'm Takuya Kanbara, and 'danger' is my middle name HAHAHAA!"

Zoe rolled her eyes while folding her arms at his insolence.

"If you think I'm getting on that thing with _you_, you're wrong. You might as well jump off the cliff by yourself."

"Ah c'mon. Don't be so stubborn. At least take one step on this thing and see for yourself."

She glared at him, yet for some stupid reason took his insane request and approached the boards of the bridge. Takuya encouraged her as she took one unsure step. Fortunately, it did not budge, but she was reluctant to go further. Her feet shuffled backwards, but Takuya was directly behind her now, trapping her from going back.

"Move Takuya! I'm not kidding!"

"No," he gently seized her shoulders and impelled her forward, "You can do it. You already made the first step, so you might as well keep going forward till the end."

She sulked. She did not want to go, but she knew it was the only quick way to the other side.

"Fine."

Takuya smirked, "At a girl."

"But get your hands off me. You're making me nervous."

He did as he was asked, releasing her to the mercy of the wavering ropes of the bridge. She took another unsteady step, unsure if the plank would give up any minute. Each step seemed like life and death in the balance as the sound of rushing waters raged below them. The bridge swayed slightly with each step along with the sudden misty wind. Zoe's hair fluttered with the small gust keeping her in a state of agitation. She finally did the one thing she was not supposed to do and that is look down.

She shrieked once she saw the depth of how far they were up in the air. Her wild movements threatened their livelihood as her body shook the bridge violently from side to side.

"Zoe! Stop! Calm Down!" Takuya reached for her petite shoulders again, securing her from moving. The overpass came to a still.

"I can't do this. Let me go back." She yelped while frantically holding on for dear life.

"Don't worry. We're half way there. You might as well keep going; it's the same amount of distance back."

Surprisingly the goggled brunette, who was a moron in Zoe's eyes, spoke wisdom and encouragement to her for the first time this trip.

She looked down then back at him with sincere eyes, "Fine, but you get in front of me, just incase something happens."

"You promise you won't ditch me?"

She bobbed her head, "Yes." She looked cute when she was vulnerable and unsure, especially with her hair flinging around in the wind. If he could he would unknowingly kiss her right then and there in front of the great landscape echoing around them. Oh how majestic this moment would have been had he but then quickly realized he needed to focus and returned to reality.

He maneuvered around her as meticulously as possible. There bodies were extremely close due to the limited space they had. The ropes on the bridge jerked with each step causing Zoe to squeal. She reached for Takuya instinctively, hugging him around the waist. This took him by surprise as his cheeks turn bright red, taking him off balance. As much as he loved this moment to last, he had to break away.

"Zoe… you can let go now." He said with a forced straight face.

Her eyes opened, realizing she was bear hugging him. Her arms released his tight body, hiding her bashful red face.

"Sorry…" she mumbled, looking away from his direction.

He turned around and regained focus, walking across each plank no bigger in width than his foot. After a few steps he looked back to make sure she was still there.

"Zoe, are you still with me?"

"Yes." She squeaked.

Suddenly the ropes on the bridge decided to give up right at the moment, making a ripping noise.

"What was that?" Zoe squealed. She knew for a fact what it was but dismissed the possibility of them instantly plummeting to their youthful death below.

"Heh-eh its nothing." Takuya chuckled nervously as sweat ran down his neck. This did not look good.

They both took another step, and the sound of rope tearing taunted them once again.

"That was the rope, Takuya. It's ripping apart!"

"Um yeah heh-he…." He had to divert the conversation quick, "OH hey look we're almost there. Just a couple more steps."

"OH my gosh. We're going to fall. I knew I should have stayed back and let you go alone."

Takuya's eyes squinted after hearing that remark. He was shocked to hear that she would actually ditch him in a split second at a time like this.

Again the ropes ripped and this time several fragmented planks fell off as well, leaving them no chance to go back. The couples stood still, afraid that any abrupt movement would send them down below, plummeting.

"Takuya?" Zoe muttered quietly, as if the ropes could hear her trembling voice.

"Yes?" Takuya answered.

"I hate you."

"Thanks."

_SNAP!_

Right down the middle, the bridge split in two. As the bridge gave way beneath their feet, both of the teens screamed with terror. They held on to the side ropes of the severed bridge, swinging into the side of the steep rocky wall. They slammed into it with a thud, but succeeded in holding on for dear life. Loudly gasping at a steady pace, the couple regained tranquility, their hearts pumping at a million beats per second.

"TAKUYA!" Zoe's voice echoed throughout the canyon. Her hand held tight to the slippery ropes.

"What?" he puffed even faster.

"I'm going to KILL YOU if we don't DIE first!" she threatened.

Her palm was sweaty and could not grip the rope much longer. She looked down, frantically at the distant site below.

"I'm slipping!" she gasped with fear in her voice.

Takuya realized how serious this just got. "Grab onto my legs!"

It was the only quick solution he could come up with at the moment with his brain scrambling for ideas. She gazed up at him skeptically. She had to if she wanted to survive.

She scampered her hand onto the bottom of his shoe. Her weight was pulling onto him now, which made him painfully nervous. He could not guarantee that fact he could hold on much longer. Her other hand grasped his ankle which gave her legs a chance to step on one of the unreliable planks. As she applied her foot on the board it shattered, sending her reeling downward, clinging to Takuya's legs for dear life. She shrieked even more, kicking her legs in the air as if she were climbing an invisible staircase.

"Zoe that's not helping." Takuya said through clenched teeth. He could feel his hands wearing out.

"Shut up! I'm the one at risk here of dying," she retorted, grasping desperately at his legs, "This is_ not_ how I want to go," she moaned, "I haven't even gotten married yet. Nor have kids!"

Takuya squinted with pain surgin through his arms like electricity. "I guess my mom was right after all," Takuya whimpered, "I would die without marring the woman of my dreams if I kept being so reckless."

"What was that?" Zoe asked, nearly shouting.

"Uh nothing!"

The boy quickly concocted another idea. "Quick, climb me so you can get to the top." He eyed the end of the bridge, which was now a ladder. It was their ticket to freedom.

Without arguing back, she reattempted climbing his legs. She could feel his calf muscles as tense as they were behind the cloth of his pants.

"Hurry! I can't hold on much longer. You're heavy!"

"I'm not HEAVY! I've been watching my weight thank you very much!"

She reached for his thigh, bringing her closer to the top. She was now at a tricky spot as her hand hovered over Takuya's butt.

"What's wrong now?"

"I can't- I can't climb your… your-your butt's in the way." She stuttered.

"Zoe, that's the least of our concerns right now! Just grab my belt waist, and HURRY!"

His hands were slipping some more. In the back of his mind, he worried that his belt may be a little loose not enough to sustain his waist.

Zoe cringed as her hand grabbed his belt waist to hoister herself upward. Lucky for Takuya, they stayed put, allowing the blond to reach for his stomach. For this one, she would have to wrap her arms around his waist like before.

Her hands clasped around his waist right on his hard, sculpted, six-pack abdomen. Squinting her eyes, her face burned a crimson red and so did Takuya's, as she wrapped the other hand around his abs. To make the situation more awkward, Takuya started giggling.

"W-what? What's so funny?" She said nervously, "I don't find this funny one bit, Takuya."

Takuya giggled some more, "I'm tickle -haha- you're tickling –haha- me!" he loudly snorted. If he kept laughing, he would eventually let go of the rope and Zoe could not let that happen.

"Just hold still and try not to be ticklish."

"Easy for- haha- you to s-s-sSAY!" she hit his sweet spot for a second.

As uncomfortable she was, she clasped on to his back like a koala bear cub on its mother.

She quickly planted her leg against the wall for leverage and reach for his jacket collar, choking him to death as she pulled like a sling shot.

"Zoe…..can't breathe!" he hissed through his collapsed throat. She hastily reached her other hand on around his shoulder then reached for the top of his head, nearly compressing his neck in half. It would be a miracle if he did not get injured after this whole experience he thought.

"You're almost there…" said the boy as he clenched the ropes with all his energy.

Just as she was about to place her foot on his shoulder, she slipped and plunged downwards.

"ZOE!"

"AH!" Zoe shrieked. Her reflex kicked in as she grabbed whatever she could. Her hand connected with the edge of Takuya's belt and with such force, brought his pants to his ankles, exposing his red plaid boxers (At least he didn't wear the ones with the cartoons on them).

The girl did not know whether to laugh, be shocked, or frightened at the whole situation.

"I guess you got your revenge huh?" Takuya joked, his cheeks a bright red.

To add insult to injury the ropes jerked, due to the force being applied to it. Takuya and Zoe looked up at the frayed rope that was ripping with each passing second

"No." Takuya whispered.

Zoe groaned, wishing for the tether not to snap… but it did, sending them plummeting down below.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

**A/N: **And boom goes the dynamite!

Wow… a whole chapter on just crossing a bridge.

I should be ending this story soon, before it gets too long with no point. See you next update!


	15. Chapter 15

**Forrest**

After the twins fell from the steep water slope, Kouji emerged from the water gasping for another breath of oxygen. He gained homeostasis and analyzed his surroundings. He was in the middle of a silent spring in a marshy setting. Behind him he could still here the roar of water falling several feet behind him.

"Kouichi!" he called out, "Kouichi where are you?"

Silence was all that he heard. Moments later he heard and saw his head emerge from the water, gasping for air.

"Kouj-Kouji," he wheezed, "Kouji where are… oh." He noticed his brother right behind him. "It looks like we survived."

"Yeah." Replied Kouji. He looked to the top of the waterfall to see if their enemy was following them, but fortunately they were not.

"The coast is clear." He muttered.

They swam to the edge of the riverbank and hoisted themselves on the soft mossy grass with their wet heavy bodies. They found themselves near the forest again, which was a nice break from the sand dunes. Their bones ached from all the vigorous exercise they were getting all of a sudden.

Kouichi crawled onto the grass and plopped on his back with his hand over his stomach, breathing heavily like an exhausted athlete.

"I… think… we should rest." He said after every breath.

"Are you kidding." Kouji, a few feet away, was on his feet ready to go, "We need to get as far away as possible or else those guys might catch us again."

"Yeah but I can't go any further."

"Enough whining and lets go." He marched of without his brother.

"Man…. How do you do it? Don't you have limits."

"NO!"

-xxx-

They were farther away from their prior point, but still walking along the river side incase they need some refreshing water. Their clothes clung to them with damp coldness causing them to shiver feverishly. To them it was a quick change in temperature, from the dry hotness to the cold humidity.

Apart from that, they still could not figure out who their chasers were and why they were being hunted.

"I still don't get why those guys are chasing us, so Kouji if you're hiding something… now would DEFINETLY be a good time to tell me."

Kouji remained silent.

"You are hiding something aren't you? I knew it!"

"Kouichi, like I said before, I know nothing."

Kouichi wasn't buying it one bit, but he suppressed the thought once again until another random moment, to catch his brother off guard.

"Now what we need to do is find a phone as soon as possible."

"To call who? I'm sure by now all our friends phones have gone dead."

"Mmm good point I guess then-"

He was cut off by the sound of rustling bushes.

"Did you hear that?" Kouichi's eyes –wide as they were- looked around frantically, his body froze in place.

"Yeah. It sounded like it was coming form those bushes," Kouji acknowledged. He took an alerted step towards the sound to investigate, like a safari man stalking a heard of animals on "National Geographics".

"No! Haven't you seen enough movies to know what happens when people check out the creepy noises… THEY GET EATEN!"

"By the size of this bush, I'd say whatever it is couldn't be bigger than a rabbit." With that he advanced closer to the bush. His hands hovered the bush ready for anything to happen.

"And so what if you find out what it is! What good will it do you?"

"At least we'll know what it is just out of curiosity."

"Curiosity killed the cat." His brother harshly whispered.

Kouichi watched with agitation as his brother walked slowly to the bush inch by inch. He just knew something evil would pop out of that bush and tear his _former_ brother alive.

He was just a few inches away when he suddenly parted the bush in half. In the mist of the leaves and branches laid a rabbit that was nibbling on a twig. As soon as it saw the two, it dashed off deeper into the woods.

With triumph Kouji turned around to face his brother, "See I told you it was just a rabb- HOLY SHISHCABOB!" He shouted, frightening both Kouichi and the bear that was a few meters behind him, trying to climb a nearby tree.

"What? What is it?" Kouichi wanted to look back but was forced not to by his brother.

"What ever you do, don't look back and don't move."

"What? What is it?"

"It's… it's…"

The bear roared in the air, and Kouchi turned around to see the monstrosity. He always saw bears in textbooks and on tv, but it was a completely different experience to see one in person. He nearly wet his pants and his heart sank several feet.  
Kouichi turned around slowly, facing his brother, and mouthed the words "help me".

Kouji took a small step back. "Don't worry brother. Just stand still… just stand still… just stand-" Kouji broke off to a full sprint as far away as possible.

"Hey!" Kouichi chased after his brother just as the bear jogged trotted after him. "Don't leave me!"

Their hearts were beating a thousand beats per second, blood rushing to their extremities. Their legs were no match to the powerful limbs of the bear as it gained closer and closer to them. They could hear the pounding footsteps of the 600 pound bear chasing after them like the giant predator it was.

"Quick jump in the river!" Kouji yelled as he suicide-dived into the water, his brother following his actions. They looked back to see if the behemoth bear followed, but it stopped in its place and watched them drift off in the opposite direction. It did not like fast food.

"That was a close one…" Kouichi said, his heart pounding. He then faced his brother and landed on top of him, submerging him under the water. "And that's for leaving me behind!"

-xxx-

The sun set in the western sky, painting an array of red, orange, and yellow colors. The sun slowly descended behind the far away mountains, causing the temperature to drop.

"I think now would be a good time to camp out." Kouichi said. His body was giving up on him from all the vigorous exercise.

Kouji looked up at the sky and sure enough it was getting dark. They had been walking for miles in the forest without shelter or anything to eat. There wasn't even a single fruit tree nearby. They would have to go deep into the forest find any, but they may have not been able to find there way back.

"We should find firewood before it gets too dark," said Kouji. He faced his brother and motioned him towards the forest area.

"I don't like the looks of this. It too dark in the woods."

"Stop moaning and just follow me…" he noticed Kouichi was reluctant, "Don't worry I won't _ditch_ you… this time."

Kouichi followed him after a short grunt of disbelief came from his mouth.

As they entered through woods they found a few lumber logs here and there and made sure they were dry enough for burning. They gathered a handful and carried them out towards the riverside like Native American gatherers. They dropped the pieces of wood in a circular pattern as Kouji got on his knees to rub a few sticks to cause friction. He place a few grass and leaves on the logs so that they could easily catch fire.

Kouichi watched his brother at work as his stomach begin to growl.

"After this well catch some fish." Kouji said, knowing that they were hungry.

Kouichi looked at the back of Kouji's head. "With what?"

"Our hands."

Kouichi looked surprised. He never heard of catching fish with bear hands before.

-xxx-

After the campfire was alit, they went to the stream to catch fish, bare footed with their pants rolled up.

"Are sure you know what you're doing?" Kouichi questioned his twin.

"Yes now shut up and look for some."

"You know, I'm use to catching fish with a fishing rod, but with my bear hands it seems impossible."

Kouji ignored the comment. He noticed a slender figure swimming around in the water, with fins. His hand slowly hovered over the moment of the creature knowing within seconds it would be in his grasp. He had hands of lightning speed and precision. His hand quickly snagged the fish and brought it back out of the water to suffocate. His brother watched in amazement.

"I got my dinner for tonight." Kouji said, proudly.

On the other hand, Kouichi had tried many times but failed miserably a she fell into the water himself or jammed his finger against a rock. He eyed his brother who already caught his fish and was ready to roast it.

"That's it… I'm going to do this once and for all." He said with more determination than ever before. He concentrated on the same floating object he had his eyes on for a while now, this time ready to succeed. His hands were above the fish following its movement until… he finally caught it. The fish squirmed in his hand, trying to escape for freedom.

"YES! I did it!"

"Good for you. Looks like you won't starve tonight."

"Starve? You were going to let me starve if I didn't catch anything?"

Kouji smirked, but his brother didn't find it funny that he would let him forgo food for the night.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed another creature squirming around in the water. It was a water moccasin, an aquatic snake.

"Oh shit!" Kouichi cursed as he frenetically dashed out of the water to safety. As mean as it was, Kouji laughed like a hyena at the misfortune of his brother.

-xxx-

The two roasted the fish against the fire and took a bite after it was done. It had a fishy taste to it but it was better than nothing of course.

"This could use a little seasoning, but eh what the heck." Kouichi devoured the fish.

"I thought you didn't like meat." Said Kouji.

"I don't but I'll eat it if I have to survive. Out hear, its eat or be eaten." Kouichi replied, diminishing his fish bite by bite.

Kouji noticed how double standard that sounded.

"So you'll eat it to survive but not if it's cooked normally as a meal."

Kouichi paused for a second. "I don't know. Shut up!"

After they finished, they took a nap so they could be well rested for tomorrow. They had to be ready for anything, and ready to get to JP's grandma's house in time.

"You go to sleep while I keep watch." Kouji suggested as he sat up to keep himself from sleeping.

"Sounds good to me." Kouichi instantly fell over and cuddle up to himself, next to the fire for warmth.

"Kouji leaned against the trunk of a tree with his legs laid out in front of him. His arms crossed behind his head, gazing up to the sky. The stars twinkled in their places, putting on a show for anyone to watch, with the full moon on display. Little did Kouji know that there was another couple out there watching the same moon and stars.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **Yeah that last lines gives some plot away for the Takumi chapter…


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** These titles are starting to sound less creative...

**Nightfall**

While the twins were having their own adventures, Takuya and Zoe were having one of their own.

Down at the base of the waterfall, Takuya and Zoe lied on the marshy grass beside the river, passed out. Previously to this occurrence, Zoe had to miraculously rescue Takuya to shore as he was drowning.

After she they remained unconscious for about an hour, she was coming to her senses after the rescue. She lifted her heavy eyes to analyze her surroundings. She felt disoriented and discombobulated from the gigantic fall.

"Where am I?" she wondered holding her head up. Her voice sound gravely. She looked around and remembered the steep drop from the bridge earlier. She felt lucky to survive.

"Takuya?" she called out the boy's name, remembering that she rescued him. "Takuya, where are you?"

She turned to her left, and saw the teen laid out a few yards away, unconscious with his pants down. She remembered how his pants ended up that way and nearly felt embarrassed for him.

"Ta-Takuya wake up!" she crawled over to him, but there was no response.

"Takuya wake up. I'm not kidding." She shook him gently. He was still out cold.

"Takuya… this isn't a joke anymore." She shook him more abruptly this time, but still the boy would not come to his senses. She panicked after he showed no vital signs.

"Taaakuuuyaaaa…" she slapped him.

"Oh gosh…" she gasped, realizing that it was possible the boy was dead.

"Takuya!" she shouted anxiously. Zoe climbed on top of him and pounded her fist on his chest. She was afraid she was going to have to give him the kiss of life. She proceeded banging on his chest till she gave up. It was no use. The girl sighed as she looked around.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." She moaned as she gently clasped his mouth and hovered her lips over his. Inches decreased slightly as her lips twitched feverishly.

Fortunately, the boy coughed up water at Zoe's face. He slowly blinked his eyes, regaining consciousness. The sight of two ogling green eye's starring at him close up nearly startled him.

"Aaaah!"

"Aaaah!"

They both screamed in terror as Takuya scurried away from under Zoe.

"What are you doing….. what were you doing?" he asked, "Were you trying to take advantage of me?"

"W-what? NO! Oh gosh no!" Zoe blushed, furiously, "I-I was trying to save you."

"Well you have a weird way of doing it." The boy said, pulling up his britches.

"Oh please… don't flatter yourself." She pouted and folded her arms defiantly.

The boy slowly rose up on his feet and stared at Zoe intently, eyes skewered at hers. He rubbed his chest, feeling a sharp pain as if someone had been banging on his chest.

"So you were trying to save me huh?"

Zoe slowly looked at him and nodded her head with a nonchalant expression.

"Well thanks…" Takuya walked off and left Zoe standing, baffled by his genuine remark. Did he just thank her? She turned around to watch the brunette walk off in the opposite direction.

"Um Takuya wait up…"

-xxx-

Along the route, Takuya and Zoe noticed footprints along the ground. There were a pair of two human footprints and one huge paw print of what looked like a bear's.

"Looks like some people were being chased."

"What?" Zoe shrieked.

"By a bear." Takuya inspected the imprint, with a careful eye.

"You don't think its still around here do you?"

"Nmm nmm" Takuya mumbled. They followed the trail till it diverged. The humans went to the water and the bear went deep into the forest.

"Looks like they got away…" Zoe muttered, not realizing the foot prints they were looking at where the twins'.

It was getting late and the sun was setting in the western sky in a beautiful array of fiery red and orange. The two teens walked in silence for rest of the walk, enjoying the view and the feeling of the outdoors and all its surroundings. It was a huge relief from the desert climate they'd been exposed to earlier.

"It's getting late. We should set up a fire." Takuya suggested as he gazed into the distant skyline.

Zoe replied with a nod. Suddenly her tummy growled like a cub lion as she held her stomach; embarrassed from the fact her body produced such a loud noise. Takuya eyed her from the corner of his eyes.

"We should also get something to eat while we're at it." He stifled a chuckle.

-xxx-

Meanwhile, they were in the bush searching for what ever wood they could use as firewood. Zoe searched vigorously on the ground while Takuya climbed the trees. After their endeavors they managed to gather a handful of lumber.

"This should do." Takuya said, marching of to the riverside.

Zoe followed close behind, carrying her own weight. She struggled with some of the load as bits fell to the ground.

"You could be a gentleman and help me carry my stuff you know."

Takuya turned around, "You're kidding right? My hands are full."

"So… that doesn't give you an excuse to be a sssssn-" the sight of a snake slithering its way down a branch right over Takuya's head cut her off.

"What…. Excuse to be a what?" Takuya beckoned for her to finish.

"Ss ss sss-"

The boy turned around as the slithering reptile landed on his back. He was not aware of its presence.

"Sss sssss." Zoe was frightened of the young man's life, but couldn't get the words out of her mouth in time.

"Ssss ssss- what?" the snake entered the top of his jacket and found its way down his back. Takuya's eyes enlarged at an alarming rate as he felt the cold scaly skin of the reptile touch his vulnerable back. "SNAKE!"

He yelped loudly and jumped around while Zoe frolicked in place, screaming her head off. He dropped his firewood and fumbled with his jacket and shirt in order to removed them. In the process he fell backwards into a hidden bush and landed in the mist of wild warthogs grazing the field.

When he opened his eyes, he saw a large snout snorting in front of him.

"Takuya are you alright?" Zoe barged through bush to see the shirtless boy having a starring contest with a wild pig.

"Eeek!" Zoe screeched as well as Takuya as he jumped on his feet, grabbed his clothing, and ran like hell with whatever firewood they could ravage.

"Why didn't YOU tell me there was a snake on my back!"

"Just shut up and keep running! WE HAVE WILD PIGS TO DEAL WITH NOW!"

-xxx-

The two survived the chase from the wild swine and recuperated at the riverside they came from. There heavy breaths were in sync out of exhaustion. Takuya placed his shirt and jacket back on and started the fire once nightfall came upon them. Luckily, they had a full moon to light up the night.

Takuya rubbed timber wood and rocks together to cause some sort of friction, as an ignited ember would light up the firewood. While he was working on that, Zoe stayed near the river on her knees, peering at water flowing by. The day had taken its toll on her. From falling down waterfalls to getting chased by a wild pig, she had enough for one day. As her reflection lied before her, she could not make out what she was looking at for all she could see was a dark blob rippling in the water. It wasn't long before another dark blob appeared right beside her.

"I finally got the fire going."

"Finally." Zoe teased. She saw and heard the fire behind them roaring to life.

"Hey, its harder than it looks."

"Sure it is…" the girl replied, sarcastically.

They both sneered at the other, but in lighthearted humor. Takuya sat down next to her and took of his jacket realizing he did not need it. He noticed Zoe staring at the stars up above them as if they were a small firework show. The expression on her face was calm and collective as if she were deep in thought about something. He wondered if she knew he was eyeing her as well.

"I never thought I would be here." He said aloud.

Zoe's ears perked as she directed her attention at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean- who would of thought that wed end up here from following you to the local clothing store at the train station." After the last words he noticed how that sounded. "Of course I mean that in a good way."

Zoe smirked at him, "Yeah even though it was your fault we ended up here to begin with."

The brunette faced her, but wasn't ready to retaliate at her comment.

"You're right… I guess I could have looked out for the both of us a little better."

His remark completely took Zoe of guard like a blind sighted curveball. He actually took the blame for himself.

The boy lied down on his back, placing his arms and jacket behind his head for a makeshift pillow as he looked up at the stars.

"If there's anyone I would rather be to here with, it would be you Zoe." His eyes met hers. She didn't know what to say. Was he coming onto her?

"Me too…" she said lowly, not sure if he heard, but he did.

Suddenly something caught the boy's attention. "Hey look up there!" Takuya pointed at the sky as a shooting star just so happen to fly by like a streak of light. Zoe caught a glimpse of the marvel as well.

"Its beautiful…" she muttered. Suddenly, her stomach started rumbling again, disrupting the engaging moment. "I really need something to eat." She moaned, clenching her stomach tightly.

"Fish!"

"Huh?"

"Try catching fish." Takuya suggested.

Zoe looked at him perplexed before she went over to the riverbank. "But how do I know if there's any fish? I don't even know how to catch fish."

Takuya accompanied her, staring over he shoulder. "I guess we'll just have to find out won't we."

She watched him walk away behind her.

"What do you MEAN-" she stopped talking once she saw the young man sprinting in her direction at full speed, jumping into the river.

"Cannonball!" he screamed as he caused a huge five-foot splash that caused water droplets to spray onto Zoe's face.

"Hey! Watch it!" she shielded her eyes. There was no response from Takuya in the water.

"Takuya?" she called out his name, wondering if he was alive, hoping he didn't drown again. The water bubbled in front of her as Takuya swiftly sprang up with a surprise. He wrapped his arms around her upper body and dragged her along with him into the water. The two of them splashed, spraying water everywhere. However, Zoe didn't want to be wet right before going to bed.

"Takuya!" she yelped as she frantically climbed back on to shore, wringing her dripping hair from water. Takuya followed her from behind with his hair drooped over his eyes. He snickered watching Zoe sprawl onto land like a cat afraid of water. Seeing an open opportunity, she pushed him back in the water, leaving him with a disbelieving smirk on her face. She did not find his prank funny one bit… maybe a little.

-xxx-

After Takuya's silly antics with Zoe, they caught two fish and roasted them near the fire, fulfilling their hunger. The warmth of the fire was cozy and helped dry off their wet clothes.

"You're a jerk for nearly drowning me like that."

"It was fun right?"

"No it wasn't. Now I have to go to sleep in cold wet clothes. I could catch pneumonia!"

"Oh c'mon. You worry too much. You should learn to enjoy the moment sometimes. When's the next time you think we'll ever get to go on an adventure like this hm?"

Zoe gave him a discouraging facial expression. "All I'm saying is don't submerse me in water unless I ask you too." She paused after that sentence, realizing how awkward it sounded. She faced Takuya as they both blushed. "You know what I mean, Kanbara!" she shouted as she crawled over to her jacket to keep warm.

Takuya did the same so that they were opposite of each other from the campfire.

"Well then good night." Takuya said, " You can sleep while I keep look out. You wouldn't want anything to happen to us without us knowing."

"Ok…" Zoe said in a small voice, snuggling up in a fetal position.

"… and don't let the bed bugs bite."

"Shut up…"

"Just hope there aren't any bears…" Takuya teased.

Zoe's eye's shot open like a lemur. She couldn't sleep just yet.

-xxx-

Takuya kept watch for an hour and was feeling drossy. It was time for him to wake up Zoe fore her shift before he completely fell asleep without her knowing.

"Zoe… Zoe wake up." Takuya shook the girl until she awoke.

"Hmm…what is it… Did you see a bear?"

"No. Its your turn to keep watch."

"Aw, five more minutes, Takuya babe?" she asked half asleep.

"Babe?"

"What? Did I say something? HAHAHAA! I must have been talking in my sleep." Zoe sprang up from her slumber, partially embarrassed.

"You can go to sleep now." The girl said after she yawned.

The boy went to sleep as Zoe watched over him. It didn't take long for the boy to fall deeply into a slumber with his loud snoring. She watched the boy carefully, wondering what he could be dreaming; yet alone thinking about. She observed the fact he didn have his jacket covering him so she went ahead and "tucked" him in. As she knelt next to him and placed his jacket well over his upper body so that he would not freeze from the night. She then sat next to him for comfort.

-xxx-

While the two slept, a vehicle parked not to far away watching them closely…

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **Ooo hoo hoo, suspense. Sorry it took long to update this. I had to start over twice since my computer crashed, thus loosing my unsaved file (that why I should save every five minutes). The second time it happened, some odd forsaken reason something corrupted it to where it could not open so I was pissed. I got discouraged easily and put it on a hiatus. Hopefully that won't happen again. Oh and tell me what you think of this chapter… I felt like I did it better the first time I wrote it *sigh*.


	17. Chapter 17

**Runaway Train to the Wild West**

The sun shined bright at the break of dawn, while Kouji and Kouichi woke up at the their campsite.

"Tsi morning?" Kouichi said, still half asleep.

Kouji rose to his feet and stretched out his arms above his head. He had a good night sleep thus the reason why he was so chipper this morning.

"Come on we have to get a head start to Cedar…" Kouji rushed to the river side and washed his face. He looked behind his shoulder and noticed Kouichi was still asleep.

"Kouichi…Kouichi!" he walked over to him to shake him up, but he didn't budge. With a quick and clever idea, he gathered water from the river into his hands and splashed his brother.

"Aaaah I can't swim!" Kouichi sprung up from his sleep, alarmed with the thought of drowning in a pool.

"Wake up. We have to get going as soon as possible."

"Already? I just woke up."

"Yeah, but we don't have time to waste, now come on!" he pulled his brother by the arm to his feet so the could start moving. Kouichi paced behind his brother, sulking in despair. He wished he could sleep in like he usually does back at home.

-xxx-

"Please, tell me we're almost there…" Kouichi spoke with anguish in his voice. They had been walking for only thirty minutes yet it felt like 30 hours.

Kouji ignored him as he thought aloud. "If I'm correct we should be going left." Kouji waved his hand in the said direction until he heard a loud noise in the distance. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Ssssh…listen!"

There was a clatter of steel wheels grinding against a lengthy rail and a high pitched whistle of a locomotive train on the other side of the woods.

"Is that a train?"

"I believe so," Kouji suddenly had a bright idea, "We should catch it to where ever it's going."

As usual, Kouichi did not approve the idea of chasing a locomotive early in the morning, but his brother ignored him.

The brothers ran through thickets and bushes of trees like lost children in the woods as they finally exited onto the other side of the woods. They caught a glimpse of the old 1948 locomotive carrying cargo to its next stop. The twins had never seen the antique vehicle before due to recent technology. Their opportunity went by them at a slow pace and was soon to gain velocity.

They dashed along side the train going 10 mph and steadily increasing. They saw one of the carts was open, just waiting for the two of them to hitch a ride. The two were like bandits it in a western film, escaping jail, heading towards freedom.

"Keep up!" Kouji yelled from behind his shoulder.

Kouichi quickened his pace to match his brother. They were just inches away from the opening. With agility and grace Kouji grasped the door and pulled himself into the hay-laden cargo. With a thud he fell on the batch of soft hay, sighing in relief. He then turned around to face his brother who was still running behind. "Grab my hand!" Kouji held his hand out as far as he could reach.

Kouichi followed behind and held his hand out to reach Kouji's. He was just inches away from grasping his brother hand. So with one final burst of energy, he connected hands and brought himself into the car with the help of his brother. He fell on his stomach, exhausted from the run.

"Whew, I made it!" Kouichi exhaled, catching his breath. The thought of him making it on the train was a relief. He was so proud; he figured this would be a great time to catch up on some sleep he so desperately wanted.

Meanwhile, Kouji stuck his head outside the door to see what direction they were going as his hair blew in the wind. It was only a matter of time before they got to their destination… wherever that was.

-xxx-

"Brother, wake up!" Kouji shook his twin as he rudely woke up. Kouichi didn't look too happy with his morning grumpy face. He was getting tired of this routine of waking him up without letting him fully rest.

"What is it now! Can I please sleep in peace?"

"No! I need you awake at all times so that we both exit out of here at the same time."

Kouichi furrowed his eyebrow. "Just wake me up when its time to leave." The twin suggested as he rested his head back on the warm hay it was on before.

"I can't allow you to mess this up. If we get separated, I'll have you to blame." Kouji hissed.

"Why do you always have to be SO bossy, huh!"

"Because it's your fault were in this mess in the first place!"

Kouichi paused to register his brother's accusation.

"MY FAULT? _MY_ FAULT! I HAD TO FREAKIN PEE!"

"SO WHAT? YOU COULDN'T HOLD IT IN?"

"NO! THAT WOULD JUST CAUSE BLADDER PROBLEMS! An besides you had to go to the restroom also!"

"WAAAAH! CRY ME A RIVER, YOU WUSSY!"

Kouichi gasped. "WHAT YOU CALL ME?"

Kouichi lunged for his flesh and blood like an unleashed tiger from a cage, knocking him to the ground.

"Get your hands off me!" Kouji yelled back trying to get his hand around his brother's neck. With his foot, he flipped Kouichi off of him, sending him flopping over to the opening cargo door. Frightened, Kouichi's head stuck out of the cargo, leaving it vulnerable to be decapitated by any foreign objects. With all his might he pulled himself back in only to see Kouji back on his feet.

"AAAH!" It was Kouji's turn to lunge at his brother.

"NO WAI-"Kouichi wailed, but was cut off by the full force of Kouji's tackle, sending the two of them out of the train. Both of them went airborne until they landed onto dirt as they rolled down a steep dusty hill. Both of them grunted with each bump along the way till they fell to a complete stop in front of a rugged signpost.

Kouichi moaned as he came to his senses. "Aw my head."

"Dang it!" Kouji cursed under his breath, realizing they fell out of the train because of their quarrel.

Kouichi recalled the fact his brother tried to kill him prior to this moment.

"You idiot!" he grabbed Kouji by the collar with both of his hands, "Now look what you did!"

"Hey, you started it when you attacked me!"

"Only because you were being winey and bossy!"

Kouji glared daggers at him until Kouichi let him go to pout in the other direction.

Kouichi stood quiet for a second comprehending what was to be done now, when a gust of wind blew sand into their faces.

They both yelped, brushing their hair aside. The twins slowly opened their eyes to see where they were located.

"Crap! I think we made our way back to where we started?" said Kouichi.

"That's impossible. We were heading the opposite direction from where we were going." Kouji corrected.

They both stood to their weary feet and dusted themselves off. Simultaneously, they turned around, facing the rundown signpost with faded letters behind them.

"_Wild West_" the sign read.

"Wild West?" Kouichi wondered.

On cue, tumbleweed bounced and tumbled right through the ghost town, which seem to have the appearance of that out of a fiction western movie.

"Damn my luck…" Kouichi muttered. He could sense that this was only going to get worse.

-xxx-

"So what is this place?" Kouichi wondered while strolling through the gusty forsaken town with his brother. The dry arid climate parched their lips as the burning sun relentlessly scorched their bodies.

As they wandered, Kouji's ears perked to the sound of billiard balls crashing into each other and boisterous laugher. He noticed it was coming from a bar up ahead, filled with drunkards and men hanging around. With an outburst of anger, a man went flying through the doors of the bar and landed squarely on his face. It was a good chance the guy shattered his vertebrae from the landing.

"And stay out!" a burly man said as he dusted his hands and walked back into the bar.

Both Kouji and Kouichi (mainly Kouichi) were frightened out of their wits. This place seemed like a jungle out in the country, filled with chaos and unruly men.

"I'd hate to see what its like inside." Kouichi mumbled.

"Yeah…"

Suddenly their stomachs grumbled loudly as if a ravenous beast was eating away at their insides. The two looked at each other with the look of "Should we go in to get something to eat or what" on their faces.

Kouji made the first move towards the bar.

"Kouji wait." Kouji halted his steps to hear what his brother had to complain about, Kouichi looked worried. "It looks chaotic in there."

"And? I'm just going to go in and get something to eat and be out of here. Are you coming or not?" With that he preceded into the bar, which appeared to have an ominous aura.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Kouichi mumbled to himself. He mindlessly followed behind his brother as they both burst the door open like wild country bandits who came to set the record straight in this town.

The temperature was much better in the building as the men in their cowboy hats and boots stared at the twins as if they were from another land. Kouji and Kouichi walked in sync to each other's steps like to two soldiers. They could feel all eyes were on them from all angles, tense as they were. The atmosphere was edgy and not a single person blinked for a good minute until the two finally sat down on different stools. Everything went back to normal.

"Can I help you boys?" the bartender walked up to them from behind the counter, wiping a wet cup with a towel.

"Um yeah… Me and my… uh brother here would like some uh uh… brewed beer, yeah!"

Kouichi felt awkward as Kouji and the bartender stared at him with incredulous, squinty eyes. He knew they looked too young to drink alcohol and they were.

"Don't mind him. He's my brother… with issues," said Kouji in defense. He didn't want to look stupid along with his brother.

Kouichi cringed.

"We'll just have a coke instead."

The bartender quickly nodded at Kouji and walked off with eyes on Kouichi in a concerning yet serious demeanor.

"Nice going dummy!"

Kouichi cringed as he looked down at the floor, "I'm such an idiot sometimes…"

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye he observed two young females who were probably in their late teens just like them. Although he was only getting a glimpse from their back, he noticed they both had ravened violet hair and tan skin as they sat down. He couldn't see their faces clearly since they were facing the opposite direction, but if he had to guess they looked like sisters.

"Here you go boys," said the burly bartender. He placed the cold, coke drinks in front of them and walked off to serve the two ladies that walked in. Kouji noticed his brother's eyes were on the ladies... for a while.

"If you like, you can take a picture of them. That way, it would last longer."

"Huh? I wasn't staring at them." Kouichi's face turned red.

"So you know who I was talking about." Kouji caught his brother in a verbal trap.

With his mouth gaping, Kouichi faced his brother with a shocked embarrassed face. Kouji took a peak at the unknown girls for himself, "No need to hide it Kouichi. I noticed them too, but you don't see me drooling like a dog."

Kouichi stuttered, "I-I'm not d-drooling over them!"

"Riiiight…"

Meanwhile, as the twins bickered, a group of three men dressed as cowboys (one tall, one husky, and another average sized) walked up to the young ladies. The average sized man with his appeared to be the leader with his cowboy hat tilted forward. He was the first to speak.

"Hello, young gals. What's a bunch of beautiful women like you doing in a place like this?"

The other two chuckled.

The girls ignored the guy's remark and continued drinking.

"What do those guys think they're doing?" Kouichi said out loud to where Kouji could hear.

The stranger made another attempt to befriend the ladies. "Ah no need to be all shy now. We're all just friends. Aren't we fellas."

The other two men acknowledged with a "Yeah" and chuckled some more.

"Ugh, can't they see they don't want to talk to them?" Kouichi was getting frustrated for no reason.

Kouji placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Calm down. You're getting all worked up over nothing."

"I'm just saying. The minute they lay a hand on them, I'm-I'm-"

"Going to do something about it?" Kouji mocked giving his brother the suspicious stare.

"Yeah… what you don't believe me?"

Kouji chuckled before he took a sip of his coke, disbelieving his brother's intentions.

"Come on now gals. How 'bout we treat ya to a drink ourselves."

The girls scooted over and faced the other direction from the men, hoping they would get the hint that they didn't want to be bothered.

"You know you're going through a whole mighty trouble ignoring us and all." The leader approached one of the girls and grabbed her buy the wrist, "How bout a dance?"

Believe it or not there was slow country music playing in the background of the bar.

"We don't want to dance with you low lives!" the girl finally shot back, in a defiant alto voice.

The whole place stood still from the outburst.

"Now look what you done did. We were just trying to be friendly and all." The tall one said.

"We didn't ask you to be friendly!" the other girl retorted. She seemed somewhat nervous though as if she was not use to raising her voice.

"You know you girls are really starting to be a pain in the neck." The heavier guy replied.

"Well if we're being a pain, maybe you should find someone else to bother."

Things were starting to heat up in the tense situation. Any minute someone could loose his or her composure.

"Now's your cue." Kouji joked to his brother who was stiff as a tree.

"Not yet… things aren't out of control yet." Kouichi's eye twitched.

Kouji rolled his eyes. He knew his brother would chicken out at the last minute.

"Come here you!" said the guy with the cowboy hat as he grabbed the young lady by the arm, pulling her closer to him. She was forcefully pressed up against his body, and as a response, she pounded on his chest to let her go. She felt threatened due to how close she was from his face. It was a violation of her personal space.

"Get away from me you creep!"

Now everyone in the bar was alerted as to what was going on. The two groups were causing a commotion.

"Here we go again." The bartender said with a sigh while polishing a glass cup. He had seen this happen before one too many times.

Suddenly, a loud sound of the young lady's hand slapping across the rude stranger echoed throughout the air. A crimson palm print showed across the cowboys face, as he rubbed it gently.

with enraged eyes, he faced the culprit who caused the blemish. "Now you've done it!" he growled. He walked over to the girl to lay his hand on her as she stood boldly.

"Oi!" Kouji called out to the group of men. Their heads snapped toward his direction. They had never seen him before and didn't know what his problem was.

By now, Kouichi was full blown nervous that Kouji brought unneeded attention towards them. "W-what are you doing? Are you crazy?" sweat dropped down his neck by the gallons.

The fat guy was the first to reply. "Huh? What's your problem, boy?'

Kouji took a step forward in front of Kouichi. "Leave them alone. It's obvious they want nothing to do with you all," he said in a defiant and confident tone, with his arms folded. On the other hand his brother was losing his composure. "Kouji this isn't necessary. We should leave before things get out of control…"

Waiting for what would happen next like ongoing spectators at a boxing ring match, the whole bar remained quiet.

"Look. What we do is none of your concern little boy. So walk off and mind ya own business."

"Yeah!" the tall man added.

Kouichi looked at his brother with an anxious expression. "Did you hear that? They said we should mind our own business. We should take their advice."

Kouji glared at his brother. "Hey, you were the one who was acting all macho earlier weren't you?"

"Yeah, but I didn't think things would get this far. I mean, there's three of them and two of us."

Kouji grunted and snapped his attention back at the three over grown bullies. "Look! As long as you three are here causing trouble… I'll make it my business."

By now Kouichi was on the floor, passed out cold like a fainted goat.

"Heh heh, it looks like your friends passed out. In a minute you're gonna join him." It was the tall one's turn to make threats, towering over 6 feet tall.

The chubby man faced Kouji with menacing eyes.

"Yeah, so this is your last chance to walk off bub…"

A smirk crept across Kouji's stern face as he muttered in a low voice, "You have no idea what I could do to you…"

For a split second, the words spoken sent chills down the three men's spine. They did not let it faze them, for they could not show weakness in the sight of their enemy.

"That's IT! I've had enough of YOU!" the boss looked at his henchmen, signaling them to attack the twins that stood in their way. "Get em Boys!"  
The hefty male was the first to charge at Kouji with all his momentum (Kouichi is still on the floor).

"Seriously…" Kouji smirked with cockiness. The guy was such an amateur charging at him with full force. He must have not seen any fighting movies before?

Enraged, the large henchmen yelled, "I'm gonna squash you like a BUG!"

With a quick step to the side, Kouji grabbed the guy's hand and flipped him into the air onto a table, breaking it in half. With just one hand held in the air after the deed was done, Kouji looked back to see the large man was out cold.

Kouichi poked his head up, noticing the action before his very eyes.

"Nnnnnnngh-" the leader grunted as he faced his last defense. The towering man got the hidden message.

"I'll show you who's boss!" the six-foot-plus man rushed over to Kouji with both fists ready to rain down on his victim.

Kouichi got up on his feet to take off running in the opposite direction, but Kouji grabbed him and shoved him at his enemy who had the height advantage. Kouichi tripped and fell causing the giant to trip over his body. With this ample opportunity, Kouji rushed forward and kneed his opponent under his chin nearly knocking his head clear of his neck socket. With a violent thud, he fell to the ground on his bruised chin like a knocked out boxer.

Kouji faced the remaining adversary who was a bit shaken by his fighting skills.

"What are you? Some sort of master of martial arts?" the guy asked with a shaken voice.

Kouji posed in a martial arts stance with his fists in front of him. "Why don't you come find out?"

Meanwhile, as Kouji mopped the floor with these imbeciles, the two young ladies watched in awe as their unknown hero in shining armor came to rescue them and save the day.

"Who is that guy?" one of them muttered.

"I don't know, but he's kinda hot…" the other replied.

Kouichi, infuriated, jumped to his feet in protest of Kouji's prior actions. "Why'd you have to tossing me like that man-" he noticed that two of the henchmen were knocked out by the hands of his brother. He had to admit it was impressive.

"Gah! I've had enough of this!" The cowboy shouted as he came charging at Kouji with full force, and stopped when he came within striking distance. He threw a vicious punch at Kouji, but all he caught was air as Kouji ducked to the side. He swung again with his other fist, but Kouji dodged it again. Infuriated, he swung several fist in a frantic furry as Kouji continued portraying his great defense by evading every punch like a trained boxer. Realizing his fist were useless, he kicked his leg towards Kouji's face to knock him of guard, but Kouji blocked it with his forearm. An opportunity opened for Kouji as he kicked the opponent in his stomach where his center of gravity lied, knocking him off his feet.

Out of breath the stranger fell flat on his back, in agony. He raised his head, looking at Kouji in disbelief. He felt defeated inside. He was defeated inside.

As the pitiful sight in front of Kouji looked up at him, Kouji turned around couldn't bear to look as he went back to his seat. "You're not worth my time."

Kouji's remark annoyed the defeated man, so in retaliation, he jumped up and charged at Kouji with a chair over his head to deliver a cheap shot to his back.

Meanwhile Kouichi, who was on the floor (he fainted again), saw this and came to his brother's aid.

"Shoryuken!" he jumped to his feet and uppercut the cowboy several feet in the air, knocking his front tooth out in the process. The guy fell through a table sending drinks everywhere as they splashed on nearby spectators.

"Hey!" one the spectators yelled as he grabbed the cowboy's carcass and tossed him onto another table. It wasn't long before this caused a ruckus.

"I did it…" Kouichi held the same pose after he uppercut the cowboy, "I can't believe I actually did that."

"Good job. Now let's get out of here before things get out of hand." Kouji spoke too soon as a glass cup sailed across the room, shattering against the wall.

Everyone was throwing punches at one another and breaking tables. Because Kouji and Kouichi started a fight (technically) everyone thought it was an excuse to start one of their own.

"Settle DOWN!" the bartender yelled after firing a rifle through the roof, but surprisingly no one listened. "That's it. I'm getting out of here and moving to the city."

Meanwhile, as the bar was going down in ruins due to the fighting, one of the strangers grabbed Kouji from the back, but Kouji flung him over as Kouichi roundhouse kicked him in the face, tag team style.

"We've got to get out of here. This place is out of control!" Kouji yelled. He ran towards the exit with or without Kouichi.

Kouichi looked at the two girls that were trapped from all the fighting surrounded them. He felt in his heart that he could not leave the poor girls to fend for themselves.

"Hold on Kouji!" he called out to his brother as he ran through crowds of chaos just to get to the ladies.

"Come with me if you want to live!" he demanded as he grabbed them by the hands and rushed them toward the exit. Kouji waited for the three of them with a mischievous smirk on his face, aimed towards his brother.

"What?" Kouichi wondered. His brother was acting strange.

"Nothing."

The four of them ran outside for their lives. Out of breath, they dropped to their knees (Kouichi on his stomach) and panted until they regained their normal breathing pattern.

"Thanks for saving us." One of the girls said, out of breath, supporting her body with her hands.

"Oh hahaha! You're welcome!" Kouichi's voice sounded ridiculously loud and nervous. Kouji and the two girls watched Kouichi as he rubbed the back of his neck.

The boy looked down, realizing he was over doing it again. "I mean… it was nothing."

The twins didn't notice it before from the riot, but the girls they saved looked identical, but with different hairstyles; One in a ponytail, the other straight down. In fact, it turns out they were twins just like them.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: ** Haha so not only did Kouji and Kouichi whoop some ass butt they also saved the damsels in distress. It can only get interesting from here.

Note to self: I really need to finish this story…


	18. Chapter 18

**The Runaways**

The morning sun peaked from behind the horizon and shined down on Takuya's clammy face. As eh woke up, he slowly raised his head from the makeshift pillow made from his jacket. The campfire the made last night had burned out, leaving behind ashes and a burnt pungent smell the itched Takuya's nose.

As the boy's eyes traced around the campsite, he realized Zoe was missing. Smacking his lips from the morning taste in his mouth, he sat up to make sense of what was going on around him.

"Zoe… Zoe?" he called her name, hoping for a reply, but instead heard nothing but annoying cicadas chirping throughout the forest; the kind that could drive a person crazy.

"Zoe!" the boy cried out again, this time he rose to his feet and hurriedly placed his jacket on. "Where could she be?"

With anxiety, he searched around the area, but to no avail. Maybe she got lost trying to take a walk by herself he thought… or worse.

Fortunately, he saw a trace of footsteps in the dirt underneath him. With this clue, he suggested he should follow it to wherever it led.

-xxx-

After following the trail for a while, it cut off for no apparent reason.

"That's weird. It's like she disappeared or something… or maybe she was abducted?" Takuya mumbled to himself. To make the situation worse would be ill omened. He would panic over the missing girl, especially if she was not harmed in anyway. After all, they were in the middle of nowhere so no one could have taken her… unless she was mauled by a bear… but there was no blood… but maybe the bear was smart enough to clean up after itself… maybe not.

In short, he had to maintain a positive attitude and be optimistic.

"Zoe?" he muttered as he moved two branched leaves aside like green curtains that revealed a roaring waterfall behind. He grinned, realizing that this would be a great opportunity to get freshened up with a natural bath.

With that thought in mind, he walked to the edge of the river and stripped down to his birthday suit. He placed the clothes in a neat bundle and dived right into the water. The surge of the cool refreshing waters relieved him of all his worries at the moment. "Man this feels _so_ good. I could stay here forever," he thought as he knelt down. He would have done so if it were not for the nagging feeling that something was wrong with Zoe. Why would she leave without telling him?

Carefree, the young man swam around the river until he approached the boisterous waterfall. He stopped as the sound of a familiar voice humming caught his attention.

It was without recognizing her at first glance, he saw Zoe stark naked in the pool of water with her back towards him. The only part of her body that was visible was her slender upper back and the back of her blond locks of hair.

Takuya's cheeks flustered crimson red after seeing his female companion exposed, oblivious to his presence. He was relieved to find out she was OK, but did not want to alarm her nor get caught staring like a peeping tom. He figured it would be a better idea to calmly swim back to shore and wait until she was done.

As the young man slowly faced the other way, Zoe looked behind her after feeling the sense that someone was watching her… and she was correct.

She stopped humming and held her gaze at Takuya's brown and shocked eyes. For a split second she did not mind him being there until she realized they both were fully naked. She shrieked loudly causing a stir in the air, as on looking birds dispersed from the trees.

Takuya waved his hands defensively as he tried to explain himself. "N-NO NO! ITS NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!"

But Zoe was not having it as she grabbed a rock and threw it at his head, sending him under the water.

-xxx-

"Sorry about that…" Zoe apologized with her back against the large stone that separated both of them. After the incident, they swam and hid on opposite sides of a large boulder.

"You have no idea how much that hurt." Takuya replied rubbing the top of his head. Luckily the skin did not break.

"Well you shouldn't have been a peeping pervert!"

"For the last time, I wasn't 'peeping' tom! In fact, I was actually looking for you after you left me this morning."

"Oh…"

Zoe's attention peaked after hearing him say he was worried about her. It was comforting to realize he was considering her safety.

"Why didn't you tell me where you were going?" the boy asked.

Zoe gawked behind her dubiously as if she could see Takuya, even though there was a boulder between them. "I didn't want you following me that's why… but I guess it didn't work."

Takuya's hand rubbed the back of his neck as he chuckled apprehensively. An awkward silence crept between them until Takuya spoke up, again.

"Well I guess we should get going… we don't have all day to stay here ya know."

"I konw…." Zoe replied. They both remained silent once again , due to the circumstances they were in. It wasn't everyday they found themselves naked in the same vicinity of each other. To lessen the situation, Zoe asked Takuya a question of her own that had nothing to do with them.

"You think the twins have made it safely by now?"

Takuya paused before he answered. "Knowing Kouji and Kouichi, they probably made it to Cedar in no time." Takuya replied with a reassuring tone. His face was aimed at the water with a stern expression.

Zoe heaved a sigh of relaxation from the soothing water as another sequence of awkward silence commenced.

They finally emerged from the water for their clothes so they could get dressed. Just as they finished buttoning up the last buttons on their garments, they reunited with each other, ready to pick up where they left off on their journey.

"So let's get going, eh?" Takuya suggested as he placed his hat on his head along with the silly goggles.

Zoe agreed while tugging the hem of her purple shirt. While they were chatting, a nearby rustling bush departed and revealed two strangers with guns pointed at them. The ambush frightened both of the teens, nearly sending them into a state of panic as they came closer together.

"Halt, you're unda arrest!" one the strange men exclaimed. For some reason the man looked familiar with his chin strapped beard and scrawny figure. His balded muscle-bound partner also rang a bell in their memories.

"Under arrest?" Zoe questioned. She didn't understand why since they weren't breaking any laws that they knew of.

"Yeah…" the strangers replied.

"For what?" asked Takuya. He too was cashing in on what mysterious law they had broken.

"Um…for trespassin'."

Something suspicious was going on considering how shady the strangers were acting. They probably were not real cops.

"If you're the cops let us see your badges." Zoe demanded. She held her ground despite the fact there were guns pointed at her and Takuya. For all she knew they could be trying to robbed them at gunpoint with fake guns.

"Um… our badges?" the bald guy man repeated.

"Yes, _your _badges."

The crooks realized their lies took them far enough as they could go.

"Fine! We're nawt the poelice, but still… FWEEZE," the bearded man shouted, "Put your hands were we can see 'em!"

As ironic as it felt, they both raised their hands like criminals under arrest.

"Why are you doing this?" Takuya demanded.

"Because we've been watchin' you two, gooks, and we overheard your convoisation."

"You've been spying on us?" Zoe exclaimed.

"Yes, and we heard everything!"

"Wha- Nevermind that! You mean you were peeping while we were bathing?"

"Well… just you of course darlin'!" the guys replied in a creepy fashion.

Zoe felt chills run down the back as the thought of the creepy strangers spying on her crept into her mind.

"You PIGS!" Takuya shot out, not knowing what came over him.

"HEY! HEY! I'll be the one doin' the name callin' here you got that pipsqueak?"

"_Pipsqueak? Who speaks like that anymore?_"

"Now both of you on the floor." The other stranger reinforce with his gun as the two confused teens did as they were told and laid on their stomachs.

"Put your hands out."

"Look man, if you want my wallet I can just give it to you!" Takuya said, placing his hands on his head.

"Brock...Cuff 'em."

With only one handcuff, the sturdy built man cuffed both of the teens together by the wrists.

"What kind of criminals are you? You only have one hand cuff?" Zoe insulted.

"HEY! HEY! I'll be the one doin' the insultin' here. Kapeesh?"

Zoe grunted under her breath. Even though she was displaying a cool head, her heart was pounding out of her chest, while Takuya felt numb all over his body. They had never been at gunpoint before and this could be their last.

"Now tell me what you know about these two." the bearded man shoved them a picture of what seemed to be Kouji and Kouichi in the back of a car, fussing at one another.

"That's Kouji and Kouichi?" Takuya noticed.

"Bingo! Now where getting somewhere."

"What do you want with them?" Zoe asked, questioning the men's motives.

"Dat is none of your consoin! Just answer the question."

As Takuya gazed at their face, he instantly realized where he recognized them from. They were the same guys that he asked to hitch a ride back in the dessert the other day (yes it's been a day or two now).

"Wait, you're those same guys we asked a ride from the other day back in the dessert!"

"Huh?" Melvin (who has been revealed) tried to recall such an event and smiled when he remembered what he was talking about.

"Aw… I knew I recognized you two from somewhere. Oh dis is sweet, jus' sweet." Melvin waved his gun in their faces, as Takuya and Zoe felt unease, hoping he did not misfire. Even Brock was sweat dropping.

"Well now dat we all acquainted and what nawt, how 'bout you two gooks take us to your friends alweady."

"We can't. I mean- even if we did know where they were, we wouldn't tell you." Zoe squirmed in place.

"Oh wreally? Well then I guess we'll have to get you two to start talkin'!" he aimed the gun barrel at Zoe.

Brock was more nervous than Zoe at this point. He never saw Melvin shoot a woman before.

"You think if you aim a gun at me I'll talk?" Zoe said defiantly. Her body was shaking all over.

Melvin unloaded two loud shots from his gun, causing both teens to scream; Takuya's being an octave higher than Zoe's. The shots purposefully missed their mark, but it was enough to mentally shake up his victims.

"Now… start talkin'!" he pointed the gun at them again and Brock followed suit with his own. Fortunately, lady luck kicked in as Melvin's phone blaringly rang from one of his pockets. He grunted as he reached for the phone and checked the Caller ID. It was "The Boss".

"Don't move!" he ordered the teens as he answered the phone, still pointing the weapon at them.

While he was answering simple questions on their whereabouts and how far they have come to capturing the twins, Brock eavesdropped on the conversation, which meant no one was watching the captives.

"Takuya. You thinking what I'm thinking?" Zoe whispered to her male companion.

"Yes. If today is the day I die, I'm going to die with no regrets. Zoe… I lo-"

"We should make a run for it…" Zoe interrupted him, "What were you about to say?"

"OH..uh nothing haha…let's just run like you said…" Takuya sweat dropped while his cheeks lit up as red as ripened tomatoes.

With one swift look to the side, the two sprung up and dashed behind thick bushes to conceal their escape route. For two people that were linked by the wrists, they were cooperating exceptionally well.

"DAMN IT! They got away!" Melvin cursed as he snapped his phone shut. "I thought I told you to watch them?"

"I wanted to say hi to the boss."

Melvin groaned before slapping his partner across the head, "You idiot!"

He then took off, running after the escapees.

"I get no respect. I get no respect at all." Brock sighed before he followed after Melvin.

-xxx-

"Zoe, keep up!" the goggle head exclaimed as they both sprinted for their beloved lives.

"Don't tell me to keep up! We're linked by the arms!" Zoe emphasized as she raise her right and his left wrist, linked by the cuffs.

Up ahead, a slim tree stood in their path.

"Right!"

"Left!"

They both called out directions for the other to adhere to, but as they approached the tree they ran on opposite sides. The momentum from their bodies caused them to slam into each other as the tree trunk caught their wrists. After their painful concussion, they realized how close their faces were from each other.

"Why didn't you follow me?" Takuya exclaimed.

"Now's no time for this!" Zoe shot back. Their cheeks were madly red.

The couple resumed their escaping after hearing a frightening gunshot wiz pass them. The chase was on again.

"You can't get away from us!" Melvin screamed as he trampled over bushes and branches, his partner right behind him.

The frantic teens were running out of options on where to go, or how to out maneuver their persistent enemy. As they sped past several bushes in their way, it was only a matter of time before they would get caught.

They exited the forest area into the open land, which spoiled their cover and ability to hide. If the enemy were to shoot them, they would most likely hit their mark.

"There they are!" Brock's voice echoed with a booming sound as he spotted their captives.

Still joined by the wrist, Takuya and Zoe ran up a hill hoping to loose the bandits on the other side. It was then at the top of the hill, they recognize a train that was moving slowly.

"What's a train doing here?" Takuya wondered

"Now's no time to ask questions! This is are only chance to escape!"

(A train… How convenient.)

With that in mind, they climbed the hill and raced along side one of the cargos being transported. Meanwhile, at the bottom of the hill the two men climbed at a careful pace so that they would not stumble.

"They're gaining on us!" Takuya freaked out. With a burst of adrenaline, he jumped into the cargo and some how pulled Zoe along with crooks were persistent and were almost at the top when both Takuya and Zoe reached for a wooden box and tossed it at the adversary. It struck Brock in the face, knocking him backwards into Melvin. They rolled down the hill in agony as the train picked speed and trailed off with the captives.

"DAMMIT!" Melvin cried out as he saw the train go off, Brock on top of him crushing his body. He wasn't through with his mission just yet.

-xxx-

"That was a close one." Takuya mumbled, still catching his breath. It was not long since they left the strangers behind.

As the boy relaxed, he felt his left hand lift on its own to pet Zoe's hair. It startled him at first until he remembered his wrist was joined with Zoe's. She was coming her hand through her hair out of stress.

"Sorry." she said, realizing she was yanking Takuya's hand without his "permission".

"Oh no, its nothing. I guess I need to get used to this from now on."

Just then both of them caught a glimpse of their future lives together bound by the wrist, and it wasn't a pleasant sight. They both grunted as they shook their heads simultaneously to rid the idea.

"I can't believe we're stuck together. It was worse before but now our hands are stuck together." Zoe groaned. She would have crossed her arms if it wasn't for their dilemma.

"Hey, I don't like this either, but we'll have to deal with it until we can get this thing off." Takuya replied as he analyzed the metal cuffs. He wondered how they would get it off and soon.

The sound of the trains steel wheels clanking along the railroad echoed repeatedly as the teens remained calm and silent. They had already gone through a lot in one day weren't sure how much more they could take.

"So where we going anyway?" Zoe said, looking around the cargo they were in. There was hay and wooden boxes surrounding them.

"I don't know…" was all Takuya could come up with as he looked at the door while the scenery passed by like a motion picture.

"And who were those guys? And what do you they want with the twins?" Zoe wondered.

"Beats me, but something tells me those are the same guys that kidnapped them… And to think we wanted a ride from them."

It all finally made sense with his assumption. The only complication was… what was their motive?

(DUNH DUNH DUNNNNNH!)

Out of nowhere, Zoe's head found its way on Takuya's shoulder as the boys face blushed, considering how random it was of her.

"Don't get the wrong idea Takuya. I'm only tired and I need a comfortable place to rest my head."

"I see…" Takuya mumbled. To Zoe his body felt so warm and ridged. In fact, she felt safe and secure. For some reason, the more they were together, the more she grew fond of him. She only wondered if he felt the same.

"Wake me up whenever we get to wherever we're going!" She said as her mind drifted off to sleep. Her body ached and was worn out from all the vigorous exercise they did. It was only comforting for her to take a nap while she could, and who better but the shoulders of a confident man like Takuya (sarcasm).

Takuya sighed due to the responsibility that lied on his shoulders (…pun intended).

-xxx-

The young man's head was racing with thoughts. There was so much to think of in a short time frame. His mind traced back to the criminals that chased them earlier and whether or not if they followed them. He also had to worry about getting both of them off the train as soon as they figured when they were going to get off. Also, the handcuffs had to come off before it got in the way of things, especially if someone had to go to the bathroom. But last but not least, there was the original quest to find JP's grandma.

After sweat trickled down his forehead, he realized it was best they get off now before they ended up somewhere father than where they were going.

"Zoe… Zoe. It's time to wake up sleepyhead." He nudged her head with his shoulder but she was out like a light. "Zoe I have to booboo!"

"What?" her head perked up real quick.

"Just kidding." He joked as he urged her to stand on her feet.

"Don't joke like that. I thought you were serious." She panicked.

"Yeah, anyways I woke you up so we could get out of here already."

Zoe looked around with squinty eyes. "Where are we?"

"Don't know, but by the looks of it, we might be heading farther than we should."

The couple glanced out the cart at the ground that was passing by really fast.

"So what's your plan on getting us out of here?" the sleepy girl asked.

Takuya gulped before he answered, "We're going to jump!"

"I beg your pardon? Are you crazy?"

"Look it's the only way were getting out of here!"

"Takuya I'm not jumping out of a train going a bazillion miles an hour!"

"Well got any better ideas?" the boy asked, but she was stumped.

"If it were left to me I would just leave you but I can't since were practically Siamese twins." Takuya joked about their situation.

"You would actually leave me?"

"…no… no of course not…. But seriously we need to get off of this thing."

The two of them stood in front of each other, right next to the door. All it took was a jump out and they would land on the ground, and if lucky… come out with minor injuries.

Zoe looked out the door, the wind blowing her hair all about. She looked back at Takuya with a worried expression, her eyes shaking and wide as an owl. It was an expression Takuya couldn't keep his eyes off of for a minute as if they were asking him, "are you sure I can trust you?" She looked so cute when she was vulnerable, unknowingly biting her lips in a seductive manner. At the moment, he found her to be irresistible.

The train suddenly blasted its horn as loud as ever, separating their attention from each other. Takuya looked out the door once again and saw up ahead there was a downward hill, which was perfect for a safer landing.

"Ok look, there's a down hill up ahead, which should cushion our fall if we make it."

Zoe didn't like the last phrase "if we make it".

With a solemn look on his face, he grasped her petite shoulders, "Just hold on to me and you'll be alright…"

She looked out the door as the downward slope came closer, then looked back at him with uncertainty. Since when could she ever trust him? (Yeah like the bridge *cough* *cough*)

"Trust me…" he mouthed his lips.

"Fine!" she finally forced herself to say as she placed her arms around him, which was hard since one hand was tangled with his.

"Alright this is it! On the count of three, and count with me!"

Takuya started off…

"One!"

"I can't believe this is happening…"

"Two!"

"On second thought, I change my mind!"

"Too late! THREE!"

The two of them both leaped out of the train with Zoe wailing at the top of her lungs, suspended in midair no longer than a second. They crashed onto the savannah hill and went spiraling out of control all the way down.

He told her to trust him. Time would tell if she made the right decision…

**TO- BE- CON-TIN-UED…**

**A/N: **_**These past two chapters was brought to you by… Deus ex Machina, (Ass pull of the gods)**_

Ha ha, what a cliffhanger. These two can never catch a break. I think that statement has a double meaning…

Of course you're just going to have to find out in the next _**two**_ chapters to see what happens for all you Takumi fans (Muahahahahaaaa *cough* *cough*)

P.S. if you're wondering, yes it's the same train Kouji and Kouichi were on in the previous chapter.


	19. Chapter 19

**A Pair of Twins**

The twins marveled over the fact the two young ladies were twins. It was a rare occasion in this place and lifetime. What were the odds?

"Wow so your twins?" Kouchi said, stating the obvious. His brother wasn't so surprised himself.

The two young ladies gave Kouichi an awkward look. If they didn't know any better they would of thought he was a new human being to society.

"Uuh yeah were twins. Just like you. Why is it such a big deal?" the pony tailed female asked.

Kouji stepped in on behalf of his brother. "Don't worry. My brother… he has issues."

"Hey, I do not have issues, OK!"

"_Sure_ you don't."

"If anyone has issues, its you!"

"YOU HAVE AN ISSUE! NOW PASS THE TISSUE!"

The girls giggled at the two men arguing with each other. Brotherly love they would call it.

"What's so funny?" the boys asked. They were inches away from knocking each other out.

"You two sound just like us on a bad day."

The male twins glanced at each other then back at the women.

"Heh heh. Really huh!" Kouichi chuckled.

Kouji could sense his brother was swooned head over heel towards the two females, given the fact he was giving them nervous chuckles and googoolie eyes. The sight nearly made him nauseous.

He turned his attention at the sun, grasping a rough estimate of what time it was and it was setting west.

"It's getting late and we need to go. Come on Kouichi." The twin called his brother as he walked past the rescued females.

"Wait! We never thanked you," the pony tailed sister yelled out.

Kouji turned around and looked at the girl. "Don't worry about it." He then turned around and walked off just before she called out to him again.

"I was thinking…we should walk together, maybe."

"Huh?" Kouji stopped walking after hearing the girl's suggestion. "I don't think that-"

Kouchi grabbed his brother by the shoulder while laughing nervously at the ladies.

"Sorry ladies. Let me speak to my brother for a minute…" he faced his brother, "Hey man, don't blow this! You do realize this is a win-win situation, if you know what I mean. Having them around will spice things up. They can keep us companied."

Kouji stared at his brother pessimistically, "Fine... I see you're incorrigible."

The shorthaired teen smiled with relief. For once his brother saw eye to eye with him… somewhat.

"Alright you can come along!" Kouichi shouted to the young ladies with a smile.

The girls cheered amongst themselves as they approached the boys.

Kouji snapped his attention towards the shorthaired twin. He was acting too…exuberant and it was getting out of hand. "Will you please stop with the flattery? It's making me sick."

But Kouichi ignored his younger brother as he watched the young ladies walk over to them.

"By the way I'm Victoria." The girl with the violet ponytail said. She was wearing a purple tank top with black skinny jeans and boots.

"And I'm Vanessa." The other girl replied. Her hair too was violet as well, but straightened down to her shoulders. She wore a white short-sleeved lacey dress shirt on top of a blue cami. Her lower half displayed blue skinny jeans and white sandals to match her top.

"And I'm Kouichi and this is my brother Kouji."

After they all became aquatinted, it was time to start moving.

"So where you guys going?" Kouji asked nonchalantly.

Victoria lifted her head and faced her sister, then looked back at the male twins.

"Well, we don't really know right now."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

The sound of stomping and grumbling interrupted their conversation. It came from around the corner of the bar as a door slammed. It was the auburn bearded bartender from earlier who stood well over six feet. He held a bag in one hand and a rifle in the other as he approached a red pick up truck and dumped his belongings in the front seat.

"I knew I should have become a businessman! I should just pack my things and get out of here and move to the city."

After over hearing the man, Kouichi developed a dangerous idea that pay off in the long run.

"We should hitch a ride with him!" Kouichi suggested with his hands behind his head.

"I don't know…" Vanessa said in a small and unsure voice. Her personality was contrast to her sister's seeing how extremely shy she was, especially around strangers.

"How do you know we can trust him? He has a gun, Kouichi." Kouji reasoned with his five minutes older brother. Sometimes he felt more intelligent than him.

"I agree with bandana boy." Victoria said, sending flirtatious eyes at Kouji. The young man felt a bit uncomfortable as his cheeks slightly blushed.

"Come on. He's our best option to getting to Cedar Valley on time!" Kouichi ignored his brother. He faced the bearded bartender to get his attention.

"HEY!"

The tall man turned around

"You think we could hitch a ride with you for a while?"

Facing the ground, the man paused to think, "…Depends on where you're going."

"We're going to Cedar Valley!"

The bartender had to stop and think about that one. "I can take you half way there since it's only several miles from here, but you'll have to find some other way to get there."

The offer was only half sufficient, but better than nothing as the pair of twins thought it over.

Kouji was the most speculative. "I don't know about this…"

On cue, a man burst from one of the windows of the bar, landing on his back with glass splinters all around him. He was bruised from the beat down he received indoors.

"Alright! We'll take it!" the teens agreed. With that, the four of them got into the back of the man's truck and drove off towards Cedar Valley. It wouldn't be long before they finally got to their destination.

-xxx-

ON second thought, it took longer than they thought since the trail on the road went on for hours and hours. Estimating by the sun's position, it would be nighttime in a few minutes.

The truck quivered up and own on the rough terrain as the four travelers drove to where ever the driver was going for the night.

"Hey, where are we going anyways?" Kouchi asked the bearded man as he poked his head through the back window.

The man himself looked like he had a rough day, given the fact his bar was brought down to ruins. There was no way he could bring it back.

"We're heading to a motel that I own. You and you buddies can share a room for the night." The man suggested. He turned out to be helpful and generous towards them.

"Oh thanks… by the way. We don't know your name."

"The names Charles." The man dryly replied. He was introverted when it came to having conversations other than serving beverages at a bar.

The mans reply sufficed Kouichi's satisfaction of safety and well-being. "Oh… well thanks Charles for taking us with you."

"No problem. Now sit down back there or else you'll loose your head."

Kouichi did as he was told. He then faced the other three who looked exhausted from the ride so far. With his eyes shut, Kouji leaned against the inside wall of the trunk, with his arms folded. It looked like he was meditating or trying to catch a nap.

Across from him was Victoria starring at the bandana boy, intently. She remembered telling her sister back at the bar, how "hot" Kouji looked, especially when he beat the hell out of those three creeps. There was something about him she couldn't put her finger on. On her shoulders laid Vanessa's head as she slowly dosed off.

"So guys it looks like we'll be sleeping in an actual room tonight, based on what Charles told me." Kouichi informed the group.

The two girls sighed with relief while Kouji remained still and silent as if he didn't hear a word he said. With an arched eyebrow, he peaked on eye open, incredulously at his brother. "I still think this is a bad idea. The guy has a lethal weapon. For all we know, he could be taking us to an abandoned place so he can kill us and dump our bodies away."

"But there's four of us and one of him." Kouichi bickered, "Plus, what would he gain from killing us?"

"I don't know, but you have to stay one step ahead of the game…"

"What game? What are you talking about?"

Kouji sighed, keeping his thoughts to himself. He just wanted the whole trip to end safely in one piece. He then opened his eyes to face the girls, only to see Victoria creepily starring at him.

"I'm sorry. Is something wrong?"

"Oh no… its nothing." She replied with a bashful expression as she looked away from him.

Kouji didn't like how she was behaving. It made him nervous.

"Don't mind my sister, but she thinks your 'hot'." The words of Vanessa escaped her mouth while shocking Victoria.

Kouji's cheeks slightly turned pink as he gasped. "W-wha-?"

"AAHAHAHAA- DON'T MIND HER! SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT SHE'S TALKING ABOUT! AHAHA-"

On the side, Kouichi was grinning mischievously at his surprised brother. He wasn't much of a ladies man so this was funny to watch. In short, Kouji was not an expert with emotions like love.

Kouji then shook off the remark, quickly regaining his serious composure. "Anyways I was going to ask you guys where exactly were you going and where did you come from?"

Vanessa shuttered while Victoria spoke up.

"We don't know exactly where we're going. And as for where we came from…" she paused, "That's a bit personal."

Both Kouji and Kouichi felt a knot form in their stomachs. How could they not know where they were going, and have such personal mysterious lives. They would have to keep their eyes peeled on these two.

"Sorry for asking…"

"Its OK..."

The bandana boy went back to a meditative state, deep in thought.

The truck suddenly pulled over on the side of the road as Charles got out from the driver side and picked up his rifle.

"OH MY GOSH! I KNEW IT!" Kouji shouted as he almost made a run for it.

"Sorry kids…" the man reached for a gasoline can.

"He's going to burn us alive!" Kouichi yelled over the shrieks of terror from the girls.

The statement baffled Charles. "What?"

The teens scared eyes faced him and Kouji was half way out of the truck just in case the man opened fire.

"I'm almost out of gas and I need to refuel…" he looked at the startled adolescence then faced the nozzle of the vehicle to refuel.

Everyone sighed in relief. That was a close one…

-xxx-

"Alright we're here." The driver said as they pulled into a motel. It didn't look too big for many guests to drop by. It was decent looking, but nothing compared to a five star hotel.

"Come on out of the truck!" Charles slammed the door behind him while the four teens followed behind him.

As they entered the building and walked down a short hallway, Charles brought out two keys.

"This one's for me and this one's for the four yall." He handed them one of the keys.

In disbelief, Kouji took the piece of metal from the bartender and looked at the others.

"You don't have another room to spare?"

"No… now take it or leave." The man entered his room just about to close the door.

"By the way. What do plan to do with you bar?" Victoria asked.

The grown man paused before he answered her. He never thought about that exactly.

"I don't know… I guess I'll sell what's left of it, and move to the city. Why you ask?"

"Just wondering."

He arched his eyebrow and with that, the ex-bartender closed the door behind him.

"Poor guy." Vanessa said.

"I sure hope he's does alright." Kouichi said.

Kouji then brought the key next to the doorknob of the next room and went in.

"Come on guys. Times wasting."

-xxx-

The group of teens had a nice meal of Chinese noodles before it was time to go to bed. The room was nicely presented. There were two twin-sized beds dressed in green plaid beddings and two nightstands and lamps.

"Man I'm full!" Kouichi said, with his back against the bed frame.

"I don't think we've ever had a nice meal like that in forever." Victoria exhaled as she lied on her back, against the bed. Vanessa was on the floor slurping away the last noodle in her cup.

"Its time for bed you guys," said Kouji, tossing his noodle container in the trash.

It was a nervous subject, but they had to figure out who would get the beds and who would-

"You two can have the beds. Kouichi and I will sleep on the floor." Kouji chivalrously, suggested to the young ladies.

"What? I don't want to sleep on the-" Kouichi was elbowed by his brother.

"…thanks," Was all Victoria could say.

"That's very thoughtful of you guys." Vanessa added.

As they got ready for bed the girl removed their footwear and the boys did the same. The guys also placed their jackets on the nightstand and cuddled up on the floor.

"Goodnight boys!"

"Goodnight!" said the boys in unison.

Kouichi sulked, while on the floor. "I can't believe I have to sleep on the floor."

"Shut up and just go to sleep." Kouji hissed with a whisper. He shoved a second pillow at him to use.

Lights went out, and the moon could be seen through the window. Its silver light luster out shined the surrounding stars, brighter than anything in the night. Hopefully tomorrow's future would be just as bright.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **I know it was kinda short but I had to end it here. (I believe you'll turning to the next chapter right… now…)


	20. Chapter 20

**Broken Shackles**

After their magnificent leap of fate from the train, Takuya and Zoe went spiraling out of control, down the dusty hill. Their bodies collided with each thud against the rough terrain, until they came to an abrupt stop at the bottom.

Zoe groaned as she gained consciousness only to realize she was on top of Takuya. Takuya opened his eyes, just inches away from Zoe's.

They both reddened in the face and separated from each other as fast as possible.

Zoe rolled over to the side to avoid eye contact, while Takuya faced up at the sky with a dazed look.

"You idiot! We could have been killed." The girl slapped Takuya across the arm, but it didn't faze him. He was awestruck from the thrill of jumping out of a train.

"That was awesome…"

"What?"

"I never jumped out of train before. It was exhilarating." That was all he could say while he caught his breath.

"You're weird."

Zoe got up to leave without him, but her hand yanked back down due to the handcuffs. She sulked and groaned. "We need to get this thing off, because it's becoming a pain."

Takuya rose to his feet so Zoe could. "Why? You don't like being around me?" the boy teased.

"Shut up!" she rolled her eyes.

They headed down the side of a road in the familiar dessert climate they've been for the past few days. To them, the world was empty. There wasn't a single soul expect them on this trail. All they could here was the sound of nature and their feet shuffling against the ground as they walked in silence.

"I could sure use something to eat." Zoe said after her stomach growled. All the running and falling they did made her hungry and they didn't eat breakfast yet.

"Me too," Takuya replied.

Any minute, from the scorching heat, they could faint and topple over and to make the situation worse, there were vultures hovering over them in a circular pattern.

"Oh man." Takuya whined. The scavengers were marking the two as dead meat. "What ever we do. Do not faint."

"You don't have to tell me twice."

With that in mind they continued towards their set path to Cedar Valley. If only they knew how close they were.

-xxx-

"I can't take it anymore!" Zoe screamed as she fell to her knees, nearly yanking Takuya's arm off. Her head slumped over in dismay as the heat melted her to nothing. She thought she was suffering from a heat stroke.

Takuya clenched his arm to make sure it didn't come off. "That's my arm you know. Geez!"

"Oh, shut up Takuya. If only you knew how hard this was for me. I can't go any further." She threw a fit, "My legs are tired. My eyes hurt from squinting in this sun. I'm hungry. I haven't washed my hair properly in days. I'm covered in dirt and I smell like-"

"Zoe, snap out of it!" The boy shunned her, "You got to stay strong. Besides, I can't drag you along with me. You're too heavy."

"Well, I guess this is the end of our journey..." She went on as she collapsed on her face in a dramatic display.

"Zoe! This isn't funny. We got to keep moving." He too dropped on his knees next to her.

Zoe lifted her head from the ground only to see a gas station in the distance. "Well… it looks like I'm seeing things now."

"Zoe stop talking like that! You're not loosing it."

"No seriously. Since when did gas stations lay in the middle of nowhere?"

Takuya looked in the direction she was directing her attention and saw the small station also.

"Zoe, your right. That is a station!" Takuya shouted in jubilee, "You know what this means? We can go there to get water and… food!"

Zoe perked her head up. "Food?"

"FOOD!" Takuya shouted in her face, ecstatically.

"FOOOOOD!" Zoe jumped to her feet and so did Takuya with their hands in the air.

"Race you!" Takuya shouted as he dashed off, yanking Zoe's arm.

"Hey! I'm not ready."

The girl struggled to keep up even thought she admitted she was exhausted earlier. They both stumbled along until they got close enough to the building.

They stopped out of breath, once they approached the station.

"Looks…old!" The brunette huffed.

Zoe agreed with him while catching her breath. "You wouldn't happen to have money would you?"

Takuya checked his pockets and found his wallet. He opened it and found a few dollars. "Yes!"

He was just about to walk into the store when Zoe stopped him.

"Takuya, you do know we're hooked by the arms?"

"Yes?"

"Well? Don't you think that would look suspicious?"

"What do you mean?"

She sighed audibly at how oblivious Takuya could be. "We can't just barge in there having people think we're runaway fugitives or something." She pointed at the cuffs as if he didn't know what she was talking about.

"Got any better ideas?" the boy said.

The girl sulked. "I hate when you say that."

-xxx-

_DING! DONG!_

The sound of the door buzzer went off as two young adults came strutting in, arm in arm. It was Takuya and Zoe of course, but they were holding each other's hand to deflect suspicion. Their long sleeves covered the metal cuffs so that no one would see them.

As they walked in, Takuya nodded at the cashier, who hung over the desk with a lethargic expression. He didn't want to be out in the heat and wasn't elated to see the two of them.

"This is some idea of yours, Takuya."

"Yep…"

"Don't let this go to your head."

"I'm not."

"Good…. Your hands are clammy."

"Yours too."

The two bickered as loud as a whisper while pacing down the aisles of the small store. They first went down the cool section to get two bottles of water and cool off. After that, they walked over to the food section to find something that would fill their stomachs.

"What would you like?" Takuya asked.

"What do they have?"

"Just some Honey Buns… HO Hos. Twikies, Cookies, Noritoes."

"I'll take the sandwitch."

"Alright…" Takuya snagged the sandwich and a medium bag of chips while Zoe carried the bottles of water.

They both walked over to the counter, with insincere smiles. They dumped all the goods on the counter while the cashier gave them a deadbeat look. He felt crappy and didn't want to see anyone else happy around him.

"Why are you two so happy?" the cashier asked as he bagged the items.

"Oh nothing…" said the blond.

"Yeah… we're just…happy to be boyfriend and girlfriend." The brunette blurted out the first think that popped into his empty head.

Still keeping her forced smile, Zoe snapped her attention at Takuya due to his surprising answer.

"Oh really?" he cashier mocked. He read the cash register with a snarky attitude. "That will be 5.39."

Takuya fidgeted with his pocket, still holding Zoe's hand. With her eyes nervously watching Takuya and the cashier, Zoe noticed the cashier man was starting to sense something suspicious and she had to distract him.

"What's a gas station doing out here in the middle of nowhere anyway?"

The guy looked at her and answered. "Well it gets busy not too far away from here, so cars come by here from time to time."

He turned his attention towards the goggle boy who was still fidgeting with his pants

"Do two of you ever let go of each other? Maybe you'll find it better with both hands." The guy joked dryly.

'Oh hehe can't do that."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

Takuya found the wallet and handed the guy six dollars.

"How come you can't let her hand go?" the clerk pressed the question again.

Takuya started sweating." Um…uh… because… we're Siamese twins?"

The clerk didn't buy it. His statement was preposterous and insulting to his intelligence.

Zoe slapped her forehead. There cover was blown.

"You two don't even look alike. What the hell is going on?"

"Hey buddy. No need to get upset." Takuya subconsciously released Zoe's warm clammy hands to raise his hands up in defense, revealing the handcuffs.

"What the?" the clerked freaked out and pulled a concealed shotgun rifle from underneath the counter.

"Ok start talking! Who the hell are you two? Are you guys fugitives or something?"

"No we're not, I swear. He's just an idiot!" Zoe insulted her partner in crime.

"Idiot?"

"I don't care about that. Its obvious your mate here doesn't have anything in his head."

"Hey man! I don't even know you!"

"Shut up and just stand there! You think you guys are just going to pull one over me? Ha, I don't think so. I've seen this happen plenty of times" The guy took a step back as he mumbled something. "I'm calling the police."

He looked back for a split second to dial the number. This was Takuya's chance and he did the next best thing that entered his head. (Like that helped him the last time). He grabbed the items off the counter in the bag and took off, out the door, leaving the clerk with the change. Zoe staggered behind him, forced to keep up.

"What are you doing?"

"We got to go. We can't stay here."

The blond groaned. You know if you weren't such an idiot this wouldn't have happened."

"Zoe Now's really not the time!"

And so the two ran as fast as they could till they were far away from the station, while the sound of sirens haunted their minds.

-xxx-

They made it far away from the station and were heading into busy streets. There were less sand, and more buildings and signposts. They had finished eating all the food they bought (which was hard given the fact they were predominantly using one hand) and washed it down with the bottles of water.

"I swear Takuya. You can be a total idiot sometimes."

"What? I was under pressure."

"Exactly. You fold under pressure. That's why next time I should do all the talking."

Takuya feigned a hurt expression, "Are you trying to say I can't speak for myself?"

Zoe looked the other way with a clear "Hmph!"

The day was getting late once again, another day almost over so suddenly. They were going to have to find another place to campout or sleep tonight. In the process, they had to get rid of the handcuffs.

"I'm getting tired of theses stupid cuffs!" Takuya yanked at the chain. "Maybe we can saw it off."

"Oh, that is a _great_ idea Takuya… IF ONLY THERE WERE BUZZ SAW OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!"

"Hey don't yell at me! I know that!"

Time was running out before nighttime fell upon them. By then it would be too dark to do anything else but sleep. Fortunately, they came near what seemed to be an abandoned mechanic shop that was closed. The gears in Takuya's brain started clicking with a bright idea. "I bet if we searched this place, we could find something to break this thing off."

They trotted over to the entrance of the shop and pushed the doors apart.

Inside were nothing but dust and working tools and the strong sent of humidity. The warm humid air assaulted their nostrils, flaring up horrible allergies.

"Let's hurry up and get out of here." Zoe coughed. The air was choking her.

The goggle boy searched with Zoe for something that would work until they came across a toolbox. They opened it and searched until they saw a screwdriver to unhinge the cuffs. With eager anticipation Takuya unscrewed the pieces of metal until the shackles fell of like dead weights.

"We're free!" Zoe cried. She never felt more thrilled in her life. She jogged out of the building with Takuya following behind. Once she got outside she fell to her knees with her hands exalted up with jubilation. "I'm FREE!"

"Geez, you make it seem like being together was a bad thing."

"Yes, but now I'm finally free from you!" she teased the boy as she did s silly dance that required shuffling her feet.

The boy never saw such a sight before as he stifled a chuckle.

-xxx-

The couple was still around the premise until they noticed a junkyard that was fenced up. Behind the barbered fence were tons of discarded vehicles, from cars and trucks, to tractors and mid-sized eighteen-wheelers.

"We should sleep here tonight." Said The brunettte. As illogical as it sounded, this was perhaps the only place that would protect them for the night.

Zoe looked at him, surprised by his absurd decision. "Are you crazy? Where we going to sleep?"

"We could sleep on one of the hoods of the car." The boy gazed up at the tall fence, noticing the barbed wires. He looked at the bottom of the gate and saw a small opening that only a small human being could fit through. With exploration and determination in his eyes, he got down on his belly and crawled underneath the fence, extremely careful no to get caught by the prongs of the fence. When he made it to the other side he glanced back at Zoe. "You coming or what?"

The blond folded her arms in rebellion. There was no way she was going to get on the floor and crawl.

"You're crazy, you know that?"

Takuya grinned mischievously as he slowly walked backwards into the forbidden automobile graveyard.

The blond groaned as she stomped her foot. "Dammit Takuya."

She got on all fours and crawled under the small space till she was inside also.

"You happy now?"

The boy smiled knowing he got his way.

Now that they were on the same page, the two of them walked further inside on their tippy toes like fugitives escaping prison. Their eyes lurked all around them frantically, hoping that no one was secretly waiting for them.

In the distance, the sun slowly disappeared behind the skyline; nightfall gradually approached them.

-xxx-

Once the sun finally set and the moon fully lit the sky, the young couple lodged in the back of a pickup truck. Zoe cradled her knees close to her shivering body while Takuya sat next to her. He had never been this close to her before since this whole journey as his mind raced with emotions. He always had hidden feelings for her but he never admitted them nor made it obvious due to the fear of rejection. But that was the least of his worries.

"What made you think this would be a comfortable spot, of all the places?" Zoe asked with a patronizing tone. She shifted her position a little.

"Well... I don't know"

The young lady sighed after his reply. Like always, Takuya never thought things through.

"And to think I could be in a five star hotel…" she mumbled, facing away from Takuya.

The brunette overheard her complaint and sulked privately to himself. For the majority of this whole trip they've bickered like two conniving siblings, and he wanted to put an end to it, but this night wasn't turning out to be anything like last night what so ever.

He heaved a low sigh then lied on his back, placing his hands behind his head for support. A twinkle in the sky caught his eye, reminding him of the stars and how nice they were to gaze at.

(BGM: Paperweight, by Joshua Radin)

"It looks nice up there." The boy muttered, getting the girls attention.

Zoe glanced at him then in the direction of the sky. The stars glistened like miniature lightning bugs glued to the dark sky. On cue, the moon would signal each one of them to twinkle like an orchestrated light symphony.

"You are right. It is nice," Said the girl, marveled by the beauty of it. She then leaned backwards on her back. It had been a long time since she ever took the time to look up at the stars at night.

"If you look from here you can see the big dipper too." Takuya pointed at the sky.

Zoe looked at him peculiarly, "Since when did you become interested in constellations."

"I don't know. I just pay attention in class... that's all."

"Oh really."

"Yes, really." The boy turned a shade of pink, "Why is that so hard to believe?"

The young girl giggled then teasingly smiled at him. Just to make sure he wasn't bluffing, she gently grabbed his hand and pointed it towards the sky.

"Show me where it is."

Takuya (who was blushing madly) guided both of their hands along the lines of the stars that made up the celestial group.

"See." The boy released her hand and so did she. The two faced each other, gazing at the twinkles in each other's eye, matching the one's in the sky. For an eternity they held this position until they looked away, cheeks burning profusely.

"Well we should catch some sleep heh-heh. Don't want to stay up all night talking about stars and stuff eheh-heh…" Takuya played it off even though he was jittery and his face was warm.

"Actually-" Zoe started, facing Takuya once again, "I would like to see more."

Zoe's piercing green eyes burrowed into his, intently.

"Alright…" he proceeded while pointing at another star clusters as Zoe juggled between gazing at him and the stars. The two grew closer together as friends as they used their imaginations, exploring the night sky like a giant map of stories and myths.

"And you said you would rather be in a five star hotel," The male teen joked, "Why bother when you can have five billion right in front of you!"

Zoe laughed as she playfully shoved him. He could be so silly sometimes. In fact, this was the first time she actually enjoyed being around him.

"You're stupid, Takuya. You know that?"

"I can dream can't I…" the boy paused after facing Zoe. She was fast asleep, cuddling herself. It happened so quickly it was almost inhuman.

A smile formed on his face as his eyes traced along the girls appearance. "Good night Zoe."

With that, he faced the sky once again like the stargazer he was.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **I think this story should be coming to an end in the next six or so chapters. So hold still and eat your veggies and vitamins as the last chapters unfold. To be honest, I feel like I'm losing my touch when writing this fic… of course, that's if I had any to begin with.

P.S. I can't wait to get this thing over with. I have another fanfic in mind and in the works.


	21. Chapter 21

**The Return of Tommy and JP**

Back on the Train heading to Cedar Valley, morning was on the way and Tommy and JP were half asleep. It had been two days or so since they've been traveling on the same ride. Passengers came and went for each stop along the way except for restroom brakes. For several miles they waited and there stop would come up any minute.

"Tommy… Tommy, wake up." JP shook the little guy. "We're almost there."

"For real?" Tommy snorted, half asleep.

"Yeah, I know it seems like forever." JP replied. "It's almost as if we have been absent from existence for the past several chapters."

"Huh?"

"N-nothing…"

After JP and is fourth wall breaking statement, the two watched as the train approached the Cedar Valley stop.

"Last Stop: Cedar Valley!" the lethargic voice on the intercom yelled.

"That's it!" JP jumped to his feet bringing Tommy with him. They both walked out the train, stepping into their destination.

As the door closed behind them and people dispersed, they noticed how busy the place was. They mapped their way out of the busy setting next to the busy road in front of it.

"Now if I'm correct, my grandma's house has to be that way." JP pointed towards his right.

Tommy arched his eyebrow. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"You sure you're sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. It's only been… five years since the last time I've seen her." JP admitted shamefully.

"You're kidding!" Tommy exclaimed.

"I wish…" JP sulked, "But that doesn't matter, because this time I'm going to meet her so I can get those tickets!"

"Just for the tickets?" Tommy questioned. JP's motives seemed off.

"Oh um and to catch up of course haha!" JP walked off nervously.

"Hmmmm." Tommy eyed JP with suspicion.

-xxx-

After walking several blocks, Tommy noticed a sign about a carnival that was in town only once in a lifetime.

"Hey we should go and check that out!"

JP looked at Tommy then at the carnival poster. "Really Tommy? We have to go see my grandma and you want to check out a carnival?"

"Why not?"  
"Oh I don't know. It just seems _random_. Not to mention the fact we haven't heard from Zoe and the others. For all we know they could be missing and we're out here celebrating."

"Well it won't change anything if we go to your grandma house, just the two of us. Plus we should wait and hear from the others when they give us a call… if they do."

"But I want to see my grandma so I can get the… details on how life has been."

"Yeah right. I'm not stupid I know you could careless except for those tickets."

"What? That is _not_ true."

"Then lets go to the carnival."

The two had an eye-starring contest until JP gave up, sighing in defeat. "Fine… but only for a short time."

Tommy smirked, knowing that he got his way. They then proceed in the direction of where the carnival was taking place.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	22. Chapter 22

**And So The Chase Begins**

Back at the Motel where the twins were staying at, the sun was coming up, far away over the horizon. Business around the building was just starting to pick up as people called room service for catering.

In the room with the four teens, Kouji and Kouichi slowly woke up. They didn't have such a good slumber, sleeping on the floor and all, but they managed to lift their groggy eyes at daybreak.

Kouji was the first to notice that the girls were missing from their respected beds and he didn't hear any shower noises. He jumped onto his feet and checked all around the room. On the nightstand he noticed their jackets, so everything was still in place, assuming if any of the females stole anything. He walked over to the front door and realized it was left ajar as if someone left. This put a question mark on Kouji's mind.

Suddenly, the sound of a truck motor grumbling blared as loud as ever outside. With suspicion and to his horror, Kouji jumped to the window in a single bound only to find out Charles truck was pulling out of the parkway and in it were the two girls. The size of Kouji's eyeballs doubled. This didn't look right at all.

The anxious bandanna boy rushed over to his jacket to put it on. As he jammed his hands in his pockets, they felt empty. His cellphone and wallet were gone.

"Dammit!" Kouji kicked his brother awake.

"Ow! What the hell Kouji! You could try waking me up like a regular humans would!"

"Now's not the time! We've been robbed!"

"What?" Kouichi glanced around to see what personal items were missing, "OH MY GOSH! THEY TOOK THE GIRLS! But wouldn't that be called kidnapping?"

"You idiot! It's the girls! They took my cellphone and wallet and probably did the same for you."

The shorthaired twin leaped to his feet in search of his jacket. As he ravaged through the pockets, the inevitable struck his mind.

"Those banshees!"

"Quick! We got to warn Charles."

The twins rushed out the door in frenzy like people who just discovered their house was missing.

"And to think I thought they were cute." Kouichi muttered.

The two barged through the door and into Charles room that was left open.

"Hey Charles! Wake up!"

"Huh?" the man jolted in his bed. "What is it now/"

"Those girls that were with us are getting away with your truck somehow."

"They must have hotwired it." Kouichi added.

"What the- DAMN!" he leaped to his feet and fidgeted through his belongings in a drawer, "Alright follow me!"

-xxx-

Outside in the back parked another truck that belonged to the ex-bartender. He kept it there ever in case he had to use in an emergency. This was an emergency.

"Did you see which way they went?"

"Yes, that way!" the twins said simultaneously, pointing in the same direction.

Charles looked at them in an eerie fashion. 'Alright, hop in!"

The three of them gathered into the vehicle and roared down the same path the girls had followed. They broke speed just to catch up to the ladies who surely had gone by now.

-xxx-

(Few minutes earlier)

"Vanessa… Vanessa wake up." Victoria whispered as she shook her sister. The twin silently opened her eyes and rubbed them.

'What is it sister?"

"We have to go."

"Now?"

"Yes, now."

"But what about them?" Vanessa pointed at the two boys sleeping on the floor.

"They won't be going where we're going. Plus, I don't want to bring them into this."

Vanessa silently got up from her bed and stretched. She then proceeded to the restroom to get washed up. Dawn was about to break any minute.

As Vanessa got ready, Victoria rummaged through the boys pockets and found their cellphones and wallets. She quickly stuffed them in her pockets for later use.

"Those are some nice jackets…" Victoria acknowledged, but restraint herself once Vanessa came out of the restroom.

"I'm ready… what are you doing?"

"Ah nothing."

"You're not stealing anything are you?"

"NO! Now come on!"

The pony-tailed teen grabbed her sister by the hand and bolted out of the door.

Once they were outside in the parking lot, they approached Charles old pick up truck and got inside. Conveniently, he left the doors open.

"Sister, you don't plan on stealing this car do you?"

"Of course not… I'm only borrowing it."

"Vicky!" the twin exclaimed knowing her sister too well.

Victoria's hand deftly followed along the bottom of the steering wheel. She yanked the cover from underneath and initiated the process of hotwiring. (Um yeah, I'm not going to reveal lawbreaking schemes here…)

Once she started the truck, they were off to the road.

-xxx-

A white pick up truck, caring Charles, Kouji, and Kouichi broke through a fence, going at a fast pace; a trail of dust carried in the winds.

"I can't wait till I get my hands on them!" Kouji pounded his fist together like a classical bully.

"I can't believe they would such a thing." Kouichi said, surprised by the outcome of events. "I wonder if they're convicts running away from the police."

Charles started mumbling something out loud. "I can't believe they stole my truck. I left my check in there too."

"Check?"

"For how much?"

"Lets just say it was a lot of money." The ex bartender slapped the steering wheel, "Aaaah, this is why I trust no one NO MATER WHAT!"

"You trusted us."

"Oh yeah, that's right… but still we have to catch those girls before they get away with my truck and all my money!"

Suddenly in the horizon, the trail of dust became clearer until the back of a red pickup truck could be seen.

"That's them!" Kouichi shouted.

"Step on it!"

"Don't have to tell me twice!" the ex bartender pressed the gas pedal at full throttle.

-xxx-

Meanwhile, in the other vehicle the sisters were relaxed and unaware that anyone was following them.

"Dang it! None of there phones work out here." Victoria tossed the stolen phones from the male twins in Vanessa's lap.

"You see! I told you shouldn't be stealing. Had I known I wouldn't have followed you."

"Don't be stupid! If you had stayed with them they would have slowed us down. It's only a matter of time before our dad finds us."

Vanessa pouted before an audible sigh. "I guess you're right. He always finds out about everything."

"That's why we'll go to our aunts in Cedar Valley. She'll know what to do from there."

"You think so?"

"I know so." Victoria stroked her sister on the shoulder, "You know you can always trust your bigger sister."

After consulting with her, Victoria glance in the rearview mirror and saw a white pick up truck approach them at record speed. She squinted to get a better view of the driver and the passengers and gasped when she realized the possibility it was Charles and the twins they abandoned.

"Is that Charles, Kouichi, and Kouji?" Victoria asked her sister. Vanessa inspected for herself as she looked behind them and squinted.

"YES IT IS!" Vanessa exclaimed, her mouth nearly dropped to the floor, "I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!"

"Dammit! How'd they find us?" Victoria floored the gas until they were breaking speeding like a run away rocket to the moon. "HANG ON!"

"They're gaining on us!" Vanessa complained. She shrunk back in her seat, wishing she would just disappear.

Victoria looked in the rearview mirror and back on the road with a mean focused expression. "Not if I can help it…"

-xxx-

(**BGM:** K2G by Puffy Ami)

While this wild goose chasing was going, in the sky the clouds thickened and grew dark, with silver lining from the sun's glow.

"Quick they're getting away!" Kouichi yelled.

"What do you think I'm doing?" Charles yelled back.

Suddenly, an empty barrel was hurled from the girl's stolen truck, but with skill and prowess, Charles steered out of harms way.

"Man, these girls mean business." Kouji said, with a serious expression.

"Yeah, at this rate they might get away."

"Don't be so sure about that." Charles said, in coy yet arrogant tone.

The twins looked at him, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Lets just say I didn't put a whole lot of gas in their tank. I did so just in case something like this would happen, soooo… sooner or later their truck will be out of gas."

Simultaneously, the twins grinned mischievously, taping their fingers together like an evil genius. "Heh heh heh… eeeehxcelent."

On cue, a crackle of lighting sparked through the sky, sending a light shower down on them. It's been several years since it rained in the dry climate region they've been for the past few days.

"I don't believe it. It's raining." Charles said with a little chuckle towards the end. He was awestruck.

"Forget bout that! We need to catch those girls remember! We can go dancing in the rain later."

Charles snapped back to earth with a mean look aimed at Kouji.

They drove behind the females for several minutes on a wild goose chase, but there still was no sign of the girls stopping.

"I thought you said you left no gas in the truck." Kouchi reminded Charles; referring to the truck the girls were in.

Casually, he glanced at the shorthaired twin and then at Kouji "Is your brother always this antsy?"

"Yep…" Kouji replied as if he answered that question so many times before.

Up ahead they noticed a cop car parked on the side of the road as if it were waiting for people to speed by. But even thought they were breaking the speed limit as he past by the car, it didn't go after them.

"Wheew that was a close one!" the guys in the car cheered.

And so they revved behind the runaway bandits, down a one-way street towards Cedar Valley.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **And so that's that. It seems like the boys have a lot more to deal with than they thought. Lets just hope they can catch these girls with a mysterious past…

Find out what happens next on…THIS!


	23. Chapter 23

**Such Chivalry**

Back at the gas station Takuya and Zoe ran away from the other day, Melvin and Brock were busy filling up their Cadillac as well as interrogating the clerk.

"So you say you saw dese two here before?" Melvin questioned the clerk with his sunglasses on. He presented the appearance of a cop as he showed to pictures of Zoe and Takuya.

"Yeah I saw them here yesterday? Why do you ask? Is this about the police?"

Melvin looked at Brock and back at the clerk. "Well you see, dese two are fugidives workin' with some other delinquents, and we've been trakin' dem down to the police department."

"Oh I see. That makes sense." The cashier bought the lies of the two men for pennies on the dollar.

"We appreciate your help." Brock replied.

"No problem" the clerk replied back. He watched the two phony cops walk out the store into their cars and drive off. They went off the to the next spot they had suspicion for where the teens had gone.

-xxx-

Takuya and Zoe slept in the back of the truck since last night. It was one of the most amazing nights they had talking to each other and discussing things they probably would never had. But today was a new day and chances were that the connection the two built up last night would not last till morning.

Zoe slowly opened her eyes, blinking them several times to remove the blurriness. She felt her hand on top of something sturdy. She lifted her head and sure enough, once again, she was in another uncomfortable position with Takuya. Gently, her hand rested upon his chest. She was cuddled up to him with little or no space in between them. The boys face had a large grin from ear to ear as if he was aware of the two of them being so close.

She gently lifted her arm off of his sculpted chest and tried to scoot away from him as careful as possible. Her cheeks blushed a slight pink with each movement, embarrassed that she found her self in this predicament once again, as if her subconscious was trying to tell her something.

Without warning, Takuya, half awake, grunted as he grabbed Zoe like a soft pillow, and rolled on top of her.

"Takuya! What are you doing?" she hissed as her body squirmed to get loose. The boy was still asleep, thinking Zoe was a nice, comfortable marshmallow.

Left with no other options, she wailed and finally pushed him off with a jolt.

Takuya's head bounced off the trucks wall like a basketball, causing the goggle boy to wake up with a sudden headache. "Ow…"

He slowly came to his senses once he saw Zoe opposite of him, hugging herself as if she had been personally violated.

"What happened?" the boy asked, dumbfounded.

Zoe looked at him from the corner of her green eyes. "Nothing… you were just… on top of me."

"What?" Takuya's eye's widened, his cheeks redder than ever, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean too!" he waved his hands about, frantically.

"Don't think too much of it." The girl replied, eyes gazing downward. She stroked a strand of hair away from her face.

They sat opposite each other in their usual silence, not knowing what to say. They found it weird how they always ended up in awkward situations.

After fighting to keep their eyes away from each other, Takuya sporadically leaped onto Zoe, hugging her down to the floor of the trunk. His face was just inches away from hers.

"What are you doing?" she hissed, struggling to get free.

"Ssssh…" the boy placed his finger against his lips, shunning the girl.

They were too close and Zoe was nervous more than ever. She had never seen Takuya act this way before. It was too sudden and she wasn't expecting it.

Their trembling eyes stared into the other. Their chests, as pressed as they were, rose with each breath at a faster pace than usual. They could feel each other's heart beat with a warm passion, close to the touch. The temperature of their bodies slightly rose even higher.

Zoe knew something was up with Takuya from the start of this journey, but now she was certain what it was. He was in love with her and he was ready to make love to her at this moment. She gazed up at his masculine face, noticing his clenched cheek muscles, his chocolate brown eyes, and his matted auburn hair that always hid under his stupid cap and goggles; she figured she might as well give in…

"Takuya… I didn't know… you felt this way…"

Suddenly a voice came from the mechanic shop.

"Here you go boy." A man said as he fed the scraps of leftovers to a guard German Shepard Dog that was keeping watch. The man then lifted his head at the same truck Takuya and Zoe were hiding in and went back inside.

Takuya lifted his head to make sure the coast was clear.

"Alright… the coast is clear." The boy said as he got off of the stunned and abashed girl. Her warm cheeks remained permanently scarlet. She did not know what just hit her.

"What were saying just earlier?" Takuya asked as he sat on the opposite end of the truck, giving Zoe her needed space.

The blonde's expression was priceless. She didn't know whether to feel embarrassed, enraged, or all the same at once.

"What the _HELL_ was that!" she slapped Takuya three times: one for the face, the arm and chess.

"Hey wai-"

"I thought you were trying to rape me or something!"

"No I-"

"Do you have any _IDEA _how violated I felt that whole time."

"Sorry! I was just trying to look out for the both of us!" His eyes darted away, "I swore I heard footsteps."

Zoe's huffed, irritated by the boys irrational reactions to given situations.

_RUFF! RUFF!_

The chained guard dog started barkingat the sound of their voices.

"Dang it! We've been found." Takuya leaped out of the trunk and so did Zoe.

"Its all your fault!" the blond hissed.

The guard dog was up on all fours barking its head off as the two teens passed by it from afar.

"Just keep going and don't make eye contact. They can smell fear from a mile away." Takuya warned Zoe as they stood still, but the canine continued growling.

They took synchronized steps toward the fence until the dog somehow broke through its chains. It dashed after the teens from a far off giving them little chance to escape.

With adrenaline rushing through his veins, Takuya sprinted to the gate and crawled under the opening of the fence. He left Zoe behind to fend off the dog.

"Wait for me you moron!" she cried out, just behind him. She daintily crawled under the gate and was half way when her jacket got caught in the fence. She pulled and pulled but the coat would not budge.

"Takuya! Help me!" Zoe yelped. The panicking male stood there for a good five second before he thought of something to do. With all his might he pulled her but still wouldn't budge.

The dog was just around the corner, jogging its way over with menacing eyes and drool trailing from its mouth.

"Leave the jacket."

"What?"

"I said leave the jacket."

"I can't do that."

"Zoe, listen to me! Loose the jacket! It's the only way."

With a hundred and fifty plus pounded canine closing in from behind her she had to do what ever to survive, even if it meant ditching her favorite fur coat jacket her mom bought her on her sixteenth birthday.

She loosed her self from her furry outwear while Takuya pulled her through. With a triumphant nick of timing, he yanked her through. He caught her just before they fell backwards, with her on top of him. They both glanced at each other and at the dog that was dragging Zoe's fur coat away, mistaking it for a dead carcass.

"That was my favorite jacket…" Zoe mumbled under her breath.

Takuya comforted the girl. "I know Zoe… I know…"

-xxx-

The two had walked for a while and not a word was said between the two. Takuya felt guilty for urging Zoe to get rid of her favorite jacket. If anything, she could hold this against him for the rest of his life till he was ninety years old. He glanced to his side and noticed the girls head wilted over like flower. With her hands behind her back she kicked the dirt with each step, as if she were kicking an invisible soccer ball.

On the bright side of things, Zoe would feel a whole lot better now that she wasn't wearing a thick jacket in this heat. Takuya noticed this as his eyes traced over the silhouette of her upper body. For the majority of the trip he never saw the blond without her jacket, which covered up her endowed breasts. His eyes lingered around her chest area with a revealing top that wasn't helping much.

_Stop looking at her boobs. Stop looking at her boobs. Stop looking at her boobs._

The brunette thought to himself, repetitively.

"I hope you're happy." Zoe muttered.

"Wha?" Takuya freaked out. He could have sworn she read his mind.

"You made me get rid of my favorite jacket."

"Oh c'mon Zoe," the boy replied, "There wasn't any other way. If you hadn't you would have been eaten or mauled to death." The boy exaggerated the details of what could have happened.

Zoe looked back down. "Maybe… maybe…"

"Plus, look at the bright side. You won't be as hot as I am right now."

"True." Zoe chuckled, "I guess you're right."

Takuya beamed with pride.

"And its not like it could ever rain or anything in this place."

_CRACKLE BOOOM!_

The sound of thunder echoed through the sky as lightning flashed like a spark. The suddenness of the sound jolted Zoe more than Takuya.

They didn't realize it, but for a while the clouds in the sky were thickening and approaching their area. It had never rained in the dry region for several years.

"Just my luck…" Zoe sulked as rain began to pour on the both of them. Of course it affect her more than Takuya since she had no jacket.

They continued walking while Zoe crossed her arms to protect whatever she could.

"Here." The boy slowly took of his hoodie and offered it to the blond.

"Oh Takuya. You don't have to-"

"Don't kid yourself. You need this more than I do." The boy interrupted her. He walked behind her and placed the hoodie on her suave body. He had to admit, she looked cute in it.

"Thanks." She said in small adorable voice she rarely used.

The young man beamed once again, but on the inside he was sulking due to the fact he was drenched in rain. He still knew he was doing something right, despite his inner negative feelings.

They proceeded walking in the rain, side by side, just inches apart.

"You know Takuya…" Zoe started, "I actually like your jacket. It feels comfy."

"Um thanks…"

"I just might never give it back."

Takuya chuckle before he realized she was serious.

"Wait you don't mean that right?"

Zoe coyly smirked as she dug her hand in the pockets of the hoodie. "Oh and I even have your cell phone and wallet."

"Oh I forgot about those." The boy motioned to retrieve the items from her.

"Zoe. Give me my stuff."

"Nnnno."" Said the blond as she dashed off without remorse. Takuya chased after her to retrieve what was his.

"Zoe this isn't funny."

Despite Takuya's serious tone, Zoe giggled as she started walking backwards now that they both stopped running.

"You tired already?"

Takuya caught his breath, "No… I'm just getting warmed up."

He dashed after her once again, this time catching her in his grasp. His arms securely wrapped around her from behind.

"Let go!" the blonde pleaded, though she could not be taken seriously with her giggling.

"Not until you give me my jacket."

Suddenly the sound of cop sirens briefly went off, startling the two. The vehicle snuck up on them without warning.

"Hands in the air where I can see them." The sheriff ordered the two as he came out of the vehicle.

"Oh- no officer. You see- we were just goofing around." Takuya joked.

"Well I'm not, now hands up!"

The two did as they were told.

"Hands on the hood of the car." The sheriff insisted as he slowly approached the two to hand cuff them.

"But we didn't do anything." Takuya pleaded.

"Yeah what did we do?"

"Hands the hood of the car."

The sheriff continued barking orders like a programmed robot.

The two did as he said while he came up from behind to put hand cuffs on them.

"We've had calls stating there were two fugitives out on the loose terrorizing the area, and you guys fit the description. A young blond accompanied by a tall male with brown hair and a cap with goggles. Definitely can't mistake that weird sense of style."

Takuya cringed at the sheriff's remark regarding his personal style. It was then Zoe remembered yesterday's incident with the gas station. There was also the recent loitering in the junkyard.

Takuya had to speak up or they would be wrongfully incarcerated. "Oh well you see officer it's a long-"

The sheriff's radio suddenly went off. "All units pull back. The fugitives have been captured…" the voice on the radio went on to state professional jargon, misunderstanding to the normal ear.

The sheriff un-cuffed the two with a sense of apology. "Sorry about that. It seems we've already caught the perpetrators."

The goggle boy pretentiously straightened out his clothes and dusted himself. "Your lucky I won't be calling my lawyer."

Zoe slapped his abdomen for being stupid.

"Haha you'd be lucky if you even had a lawyer," the sheriff laughed and went into his patrol vehicle. "Sorry about the confusion." He started his car.

"Its ok!" Zoe replied. Just then a familiar bright idea entered the young girls head.

"Um, officer? You wouldn't mind giving us a ride to Cedar Valley, would you?" she pointed down the road.

The officer paused, calculating the distance and time.

"Sure. Don't mind if I do."

He then offered them to the back of the vehicle so they could get in.

Just as the two hitchhikers entered in, a red pickup truck and white pickup truck sped past them going a thousand miles an hour. IT appeared that one was chasing the other.

The sheriff's alarm went off, due to how fast they were going, but he ignored the signal.

"I'm getting to old for this." He mumbled.

With that he drove the two teens towards Cedar Valley where hopefully they would finally reunite with their friends… that's if they are still alive and well.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **And so the plot thickens. After being in several awkward situations, the two may have finally grew fond of each other… or have they?

Find out what happens next on…THIS!


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: **Previously, on… THIS! Na I'm just kidding… read already so I can move on with my life… *sigh*. Oh and on a side note you're going to have to suspend your disbeliefs (or beliefs) in order for the next few chapters to make sense. OK enjoy now.

**Carnival **

The two trucks that had been chasing each other for miles finally entered the entrance of Cedar Valley. It wasn't long before the setting looked like an actual town, then a desert, as people walked amongst the streets. There were even traffic signs to direct the traffic.

"We' finally made it!" Kouichi acknowledged to his brother. Charles, who was still on the steering wheel, ignored their conversation due to how hard press he was on catching the girls. He was right on their tale, tires screeching with each turn on every street.

-x-x-x-

"Dammit! I can't lose these guys!" Victoria cursed as she eyed both the road ahead and the rearview mirror. The car began to stutter as if it were out of gas. She noticed the gas gauge was almost empty.

"SEE! This wouldn't have happened if you had at least left their stuff alone!" Vanessa scolded her sister while clinging tight to her seat.

"Hey, are you going to sit there and ridicule me or are you going to help come up with a plan."

The sister silenced herself and faced the front with a pouted mouth. She didn't want to partake in her sister's delinquent ways.

Outside the window, the girls saw what seemed to be a carnival being held for the fall season. This brought a great idea to Victoria. The girl switched the truck into high gear, despite the little remainder of gas left. The speeding vehicle left a trail of tire marks on the road as well as the guys in the other truck.

"What are you doing?" Vanessa shouted, nearly having a heart attack.

"Brace yourself!"

Going towards an intersection at high speed, Victoria took a wild risk. She violently turned the steering wheel to the side, almost reeling the vehicle over. With no more than a second to spare, the two rushed out of the truck, before any vehicles collided with them.

The guys behind them rushed their breaks, just meters away from ramming into the abandoned vehicle.

In a matter of seconds, a pile of vehicles collided into the truck, causing a major accident that would hold up traffic for hours.

The truck burst into flames as the girls ran away fro their lives, towards the gate to the carnival.

Meanwhile, Charles jumped out of his vehicle and fell on his knees at the sight of his burning truck. His dreams went up in flames.

"NOOOOOOOOO!"

Both Kouji and Kouichi poked their head out the window.

"What's wrong?" (The guy's truck is on fire that's what's wrong)

"That truck had a check over hundred thousand dollars for my bar." Charles held his head in agony. He couldn't bear the loss.

The male twins looked at each other then at the grieving ex-bartender.

"Sorry to hear that!" the boys yelled simultaneously. With lack of compassion, they jumped out the vehicle and went after the two girls that escaped into the carnival.

"Shouldn't we at least thank Charles for helping us?" Kouichi asked his young twin.

"Na, he'll be ok. He's a grown man after all."

"Yeah, a grown man that's crying his head off."

The two approached the gates but found out they had to pay before they could get in. Thanks to the thieving girls, they didn't have their wallets with them either.

"I'm sorry you have to pay before you can get in," the man at the gate said.

"But you don't understand. We've been robbed by those girls and we're trying to catch them!" Kouichi explained to the gatekeeper, pointing to the girls that disappeared into a large crowd.

"Yeah I've heard them all, now pay up."

This went on for minutes on end until they came to the sad conclusion they weren't getting in without money for tickets. They would have to find another way inside.

-x-x-x-

(Meanwhile, not too far away…)

"So how long you two been together?" the sheriff asked the two teens at the back of his vehicle, on their way to Cedar Valley.

Both Zoe and Takuya had an expression of shock and embarrassment.

"Oh no… you see…."

"We're not really together." Zoe briefly finished Takuya's sentence, looking away to the side.

"Oops, pardon me. If I didn't know better I'd say you two were. The way you guys were huggin on each other earlier when I found you two."

"We weren't huggin each other," Zoe snapped.

"Yeah, she stole my coat that's all," Takuya, added.

"No I didn't. You let me borrow it."

"Yeah, that was before you said you wouldn't give it back."

"Well duh! I was kidding. And you can have your stupid jacket back."

"Fine! Give it too me." Takuya snatched the outwear.

The officer chuckled amongst himself. They really did sound like they were together.

Without warning, the car radio went off, "All nearby units report to an accident near Cedar Valley Carnival. I repeat, all nearby units report to accident near Cedar Valley Carnival!"

"Sorry kids. Duty calls." The officer cranked the car into higher gear and sounded his sirens, sending them down the road like a flaming jet. .

-x-x-x-

(Back at the Entrance of the Carnvival)

After the defeated attempts of trying to get in, the twins walked to the side of the road and watched the accident that happened before them. Charles was still on the ground crying his lungs out.

"This sucks…" said Kouichi as he jammed his hands in his pockets, ignoring Charles rants.

Kouji replied with a grunt while he pondered on their next move. From the corner of his eye, he saw a bus pull up and out came a marching band. The line of members walked through a door meant just for employees and VIPs.

"Quick, I have an idea." Kouji grabbed his brother and raced towards the line of people. They waited for the last one to come out before they followed behind. They didn't see the bouncer at first until they came to the door.

"Where do you think you guys are going?"

"We're part of the band and we forgot to wear our uniform."

"Yeah, our conductor said we should hurry up and change once we get inside."

The bouncer looked at them skeptically. He did not buy their story at first.

"Fine! Hurry up! Wouldn't want you to be late now, would we."

Silently the twins cheered once they entered inside.

"Who would have thought that would work?" Kouji muttered.

-x-x-x-

(Just a few minutes earlier…)

JP and Tommy had just arrived to the festival. It wasn't as long as they thought it would take to get there. In fact, the smoke from the crash helped a whole lot, due to curiosity.

"WOW! What happened here?" JP asked himself as he watched the place become lively, sirens and trucks coming to the scene to pacify the area. Even one particular sheriff patrol vehicle showed up to the scene, abruptly.

"Look, there's a man crying his eyeballs out!" Tommy pointed to the estranged man crying over spilt milk.

"I sure hope everyone's ok." JP said with wishful thinking. He then walked towards the gate of the festival with Tommy behind him.

Their admission was granted once JP paid for both of their tickets.

"Hope your happy, Tommy." The large male sneered as he painfully paid up the money and walked through the gate. He may not have noticed it but he could have sworn he heard his and Tommy's name being called.

-x-x-x-

(Just as this was happening…)

A sheriffs vehicle approached to the scene of the accident as well as ambulances and fire trucks that just so happened to be nearby. Men and women quickly jumped out of their vehicles with axes and gurneys on standby.

"Your free to go." The officer referred to Takuya and Zoe before he made his way to the man crying on his knees.

The two teens saw themselves in a strange place as the accident before them was being tamed down.

"You think we'll ever find everybody here?" Takuya asked his fellow female partner.

Zoe ignored him while she looked around for a hint of where they were located. She did a double take towards the carnival's gates nearby as she spotted what seemed to be a large brunette male accompanied by a young and short boy with a familiar conductors hat.

"I don't believe it! That's JP and Tommy!" Zoe exclaimed.

Takuya looked in her direction at the same people, and he was in disbelief as well.

"Wow, what are the odds," the teen cuffed his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Hey, JP! Tommy!" but the two strangers kept walking through the gate.

"Maybe it's not them." Zoe muttered.

"Na, I'm sure it's them. It's got to be!"

With that, Takuya grabbed Zoe's hand and chased after the two people that appeared to be their friends. They bought their way in the festival and fought through the crowds of people. The place was packed like football stadium, only smaller children with adults babysitting them.

While they fought t through the crowd to reuniting with two of their alleged friends, a black familiar Cadillac parked right behind them. Things were about to get ugly.

-x-x-x-

"Dammit! Where could they have gone! They could be anywhere!" Kouji cursed aloud.

Kouichi stood beside him as crowds of people walked by them in all directions. It was like searching for a needle in a haystack… or a grain of sand on a beach… or one's car keys in a ten-story mansion (That must suck).

They almost lost hope until they saw two distinct females lurking around a tent as if they were on the lookout for someone.

"THERE! THEY ARE!" Kouji yelled.

"The Banshees!" Kouichi echoed. Once again they were in hot pursuit.

The female twins realized they been spotted and immediately broke off into a sprint. The chase was on.

-x-x-x-

"JP!"

"Tommy!"

Both Takuya and Zoe called out in the mist of the crowd, but there was no reply. JP and Tommy disappeared in the vast majority.

"Geez, how did they get away so fast?" Takuya was stressed out. The whole rigmarole was exhausting.

"Something tells me it really wasn't them. Our minds were just playing tricks on us."

The two continued roaming the streets of festival, passing by each booth and station for display. Takuya looked around at each display like a little child in a candy shop. "You know, while we're at it, we might as well have some fun."

Zoe snapped her head at his direction, "How could you think about that while we are in a crisis like this?"

The realization shunned the brunette as they continued strolling down the paths of the Carnival. "It was just a thought…"

"…Where do ya two think you're goin'?"

The young teens slowly turned around as if they heard a ghastly voice. To their horror, it was Melvin and Brock. They had spotted them out of the sea of people.

-x-x-x-

The sound of bowling pins falling to the ground echoed near one the gaming booths. Tommy was on a winning streak, winning many games at a time.

"Lets try the arcade next."

"Tommy that's the hundredth one you've played today. I'm tired and I want to go home."

"Ok. Fine…" Tommy sighed, "Right after we try the arcade."

"Oh maaaan…" JP moaned. It was like being stuck babysitting a younger sibling.

-x-x-x-

Kouji and Kouichi were on the tails of the sister bandits. The girls jumped obstacles of rails, carts and even people.

"They're gaining on us!" Vanessa yelled out.

Victoria cursed under breath as she turned around to see how close the guys were. With a quick display of reflexes she knocked over a stand full of apples. The carton of fruit fell to the ground, angering the man selling the apples.

"Curse YOU! I spent all year harvesting those!" the man yelled. His veins popped from his forehead.

The girls ignored the salesman while Kouji and Kouichi did there best to avoid stepping on the fruit. They didn't want to anger the man even more.

Up ahead lied a red tent where the twin girls hid behind. The boys resumed in hot pursuit, knowing it was just a matter of time before they got their hands on them.

As they entered the tent, they found out it was a house of mirror… or horrors. Everywhere they turned was a reflection of them. The confusion on their faces said it all.

"I hate these things." Kouji mumbled as the walked into down a narrow path.

"No kidding." Kouichi replied.

They noticed the twins were ahead of them and ran in their direction only to find out it was a reflection. There were many of the girls in each mirror, but not a single one was the real thing.

-x-x-x-

"How did you find us!" both Takuya and Zoe's face, showed how surprised they were to see the bandits they ditched back at the woods.

"How else do you think we would?"

Takuya and Zoe put their heads together to figure out the impossible conundrum.

Melvin showed them a device with a screen and a ticking light that beeped. It was a tracer.

Takuya's shocked expression turned grave. "But how?"

"Well foirst we had tracers on the handcuffs we gave you, but we figured you would get rid of them eventually, that's why we placed some on your jackets when you weren't looking."

"Luckily, you still kept one of dem." Brock added.

Zoe gasped, placing her hand against her mouth. They were referring to her jacket being confiscated by the menacing canine at the junkyard.

"But don't worry. This will all go easy once you tell us were you friends are."

The two were getting tired of hearing the same plea for their friend's whereabouts.

"Like we said before; we don't know!"

"We thought you might say that." The bearded bandit revealed his concealed handgun.

"I'm going to ask again. Where are they?"

The bandits grabbed them by back and forced them to a secluded area in a tent.

"Are you serious? You can't kill us in front of all these people."

"Don't be stupid. We won't kill you. We'll just rough you guys up a-"

Melvin cut off by the sound of an unsettling disturbance. Two teens were in hot pursuit of two young females. With disbelief in his eyes, he noticed the two young men were in fact Kouji and Kouichi. They had found their targets since day one.

"Well I'll be damn! It's dem two kids," Melvin realized as he and Brock shoved Takuya and Zoe to the floor and ran after Kouji and Kouichi.

"What about them, Melvin?"

"Forget them! We found what we came for!"

The two bandits ran off leaving Takuya and Zoe, discombobulated.

"They found Kouji and Kouichi?"

Zoe remained silent, yet ecstatic at the fact they could finally reunite with all of their friends in such a weird twist of fate.

(Cue the fiasco music)

"Comeback here!"

The twins continued chasing after the girls. They leaped over display tables, and game booths just to catch up to them. As they sidestepped each person in their way, they got closer and closer to the girls.

"NO RUNNGING!" one for the employees yelled as they passed by. They ignored the mans warning and continued chasing each other.

The girls jumped over a rail leading to an elephant pin. As they ran through the legs of the large animals without them flinching, the boys followed close behind. Despite how weird this was, the elephants blared and wailed as they knocked over each other. People watched the commotion, from afar as one of the elephants unknowingly broke the fence that was separating them from the rest of the people passing by.

"Sorry about that!" Kouichi yelled behind his shoulder. His apologies were useless as the elephants rampage through the streets of the carnival, terrorizing the people.

Kouji glanced across his shoulder to see the commotion. "Sucks for them."

Meanwhile, the girls turned down a secluded path and ran at full speed while the anger fueled twins persisted. Fatigue was finally wearing them down ever since the beginning of the chase.

Victoria and Vanessa came to an abrupt stop as two men with a large table with assortments of papers and decoration came from around the corner. The boys behind them came at full speed, head on collision with the girls and the men with the table.

Shards of wood and paper went everywhere as all the "collision-ees" fell to the floor.

"WHAT GIVES!" The two men carrying the table screamed. They were extremely pissed off. "We spent all night preparing that thing."

"Sorry about that." Kouichi apologized on the behalf of his brother and himself.

At the same time, the boys were on top of the girls, Kouji on Victoria, Kouichi on Vanessa.

"As for you two give us back our stuff!" Kouji demanded with an angry tone.

"Yeah, give them back now!" Kouichi added.

The girls squirmed underneath their weight, despite how awkward their situation looked to any innocent bystander.

"Fine!" Victoria screamed, "Now let go of us!"

The boys did a she said as she handed them their wallets and cell phones.

"What exactly where you planning on doing with these?"

"Nothing…" Victoria sighed, "I wanted to make a call with them but you guys have horrible phones."

"Hey!" Kouichi retorted.

Kouji continued his interrogation, "And what about our wallets?"

"We needed money."

Kouichi placed the stolen items back in his pocket, as he tried to wrap his head around the whole situation. "What I don't understand is why you girls would do such a thing. I thought we were becoming friends?"

"We were… at least I was." Vanessa said, in a timid voice.

Kouji ignored the girl's remark. "And who exactly were you trying to make a call to?"

"An important family member of ours." Victoria answered as if she had something to hide.

The boys eyed the two girls carefully, just in case they would see any flaws in their statement and behavior. Kouji put the piece of information together like a detective in order to get a better understanding of the girls motives.

"You still haven't told us who you all are running from?" Kouji said, hitting the nail on the head.

Both of the girls were surprised the guys figured out their motives.

"How'd you know we were running?"

"Its pretty obvious. You girls look lost and all alone."

"Hello! What about our table? Who's going to fix this?" the two employees interrupted the conversation. They wanted to be known that they were angry with their broken table.

The four teens starred at the two men and their broken table, with no sympathy to help them out.

"Well. Well. Well. If it isn't you two gooks dat got away from us last time."

Kouji and Kouichi faced the direction of the familiar voice. Unfortunately, it was Melvin and Brock, and they looked glad to see them.

"How the hell did you find us?" Kouichi gasped.

"Dat's a good question, actually," Melvin folded his arms and waved his index finger at the four of them, "You see we found some friends of yours a while back in the woods and it just so happened they wound up leading us right to you at this very location."

"Which friends?" Kouji and Kouichi retorted. They were shocked to hear that anyone of their comrades were nearby.

"Oh some two smucks. A blond and dumb brunette. I forget the names. Zoley and Takama. Or was it Zokuya and Takumi?"

"Takuya and Zoe?"

"Yeah that's the ones."

"Where are they?" both Kouji and Kouichi yelled.

"That won't matter after we get you two back to where you belong. With the boss."

"Who are these guys?" Vanessa asked, timid as ever as she hid behind he sister.

"Don't ask. We haven't got a clue either." The bandana teen replied.

"All we know is that they've been trying to kidnap us for some guy named 'The Boss'," the shorthaired twin added.

Brock brought out handcuffs and a pair of nun chucks. "We'll be taking the girls also for our own purposes as well."

The young men stepped in front of the anxious girls that held dearly to the two boys. They were their last defense. "We won't let you."

"For the last time, can somebody tell us what the hell is going on? Our table needs to be fixed." One of the angered employees yelled while the other watched with distaste.

The two men were on their feet now, perplexed from the weird conversations between the six of them.

Melvin loaded his gun, and in the blink of an eye, the two men ran off in the other direction.

"Now where we? That's right. You all be comin' wid us now!"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N:** Like I said, this story is so much better when you don't think too much into it. SUSPEND YOUR DISBELIEF!

As for how this all ends, you'll just have to flip towards the next chapter…


	25. Chapter 25

**A Reunion Worth Waiting For**

(A few moments before the previous segment…)

After being shoved to the ground, Takuya and Zoe ran after Melvin and Brock, hoping to see their friends for the first time in ages. Unfortunately Melvin and Brock were getting away, leaving the fatigued teenagers in the dust.

"They're getting away." Takuya huffed and puffed heavily, stopping in his tracks. Zoe was right beside him, tired as well.

They both stopped to catch their breaths, still keeping their eye on the escaping bandits.

Takuya dug his hand in his pockets and found his phone. An idea suddenly popped into his notorious empty brain.

"I have an idea-"

"Stop! The last time you told me that, I found myself being chased by a dog that stole my jacket, and before that I was hurled out of a train falling down a hill." Zoe cut the brunette off before he could finish. She had enough of his bright ideas.

"Yeah, but this time I'm sure its good," the boy ranted. His eyes analyzed the area till he found what he was looking for: a telephone booth.

"Do you still have Detective Peterson's number?"

Zoe was baffled by the name. She had forgotten all about him. She instantly grabbed her boobs. "I think I do?" she rummaged through her bra until she located the card info that was given to her by the detective himself.

"Here it is."

"Um…Good…" the boy grabbed the card from her and dragged her with him to the nearest telephone booth.

They both squeezed through the narrow contraption, pressed up against each other.

"Takuya, move your hand."  
"Why?"

"That's my butt you're groping."

"OH sorry!"

The male readjusted himself a he reached for the phone and dialed the detective's number.

"You think Detective Peterson will answer?" Zoe wondered.

Takuya side glanced the girl, "He better."

"You know we could just call the cops…" Zoe randomly mentioned.

-x-x-x-

"You say you found them?" Detective Peterson yelled into the phone piece while looking at several documents for an up coming case.

"Yes, we're pretty sure."

"What do you mean?"

"We met the guys that kidnapped them, and we know they're after them."

The detective wrote down a few notes on the other end as he flicked his blond hair from his eyes.

"Just tell me where you guys are and I'll be down there with back up."

Takuya explained in best detail where they were located, hoping he get help in time.

"Alright, I'm on my way, and don't do anything reckless till I get there."

"Ok b…" Takuya had the phone snatched from him by Zoe.

"Hiiiiiiiii Mr. Peterson." Zoe flirtatiously spoke into the phone piece, as she pictured the handsome detective on the other end.

"Um hi. Who is this?"

To Zoe's horror the detective didn't recognize her voice. "This is Zoe remember."

"Oh yeah. Um hi!"

"Hiii…" she continued flirting with the detective through the telephone while Takuya watched in his awkward disposition. He then snatched the phone from the girl and told the detective to come on his way before he hung up.

"Hey! What are you doing? I wasn't done."

"Oh please Zoe. You would never be done, and Kouji and Kouichi would be gone by now…"

He reminded them why they both called the detective in the first place.

As they exited the booth they encounter a loud uproar from up ahead. It was the sound of an earthquake blaring with trumpets. Men and women ran for their lives as elephants that some how escaped their cages stampede down the dirt roads.

"What the?" Takuya was speechless and so was Zoe as their jaws dropped ten feet.

The elephants headed their way with a trail of dustily furry.

"We need to get out of here!" Takuya yelled, stating the obvious. He left without Zoe, even though she stated she was tired earlier. The girl spun around to follow the young man but tripped over her own feet. She fell with a thud.

Takuya with dread in his eyes, spun around to Zoe's rescue. "Get up!"

The girl slowly got to her feet. "I don't think I can keep doing this," she moaned.

The elephants approached closer and closer like an elephant tidal wave, leaving Takuya with no time at all to encourage the blond.

"Here." The boy grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her over his shoulders in a fireman carry. With her securely on his shoulder, he frantically dashed off in the opposite direction from the herd of elephants.

"This is _so_ embarrassing." The girl mumbled.

-x-x-x-

"I win! I win!" Tommy shouted as he beat JP in a game of air hockey. It was their tenth match.

"Tommy, I'm bored. Let's do something else… that you're not good at."

Tommy snickered. "Ok… how about we go ride the roller coasters then."

"Fine… as long as you're not beating me in anything." JP whispered the last part while a group of kids watched him lose to the young Tommy. JP had to admit, it was humiliating, considering his dignity was on the line.

Meanwhile, outside the arcade, a herd of elephants rampaged down the road along with people running for their lives.

"What the hell is going on out there?" JP muttered while Tommy scored on him once more.

-x-x-x-

"Now, let's go! All of you!" Melvin ordered, like a sergeant training young soldiers.

"Move it!" the stoutly Brock echoed his partner.

Kouji and Kouichi slowly approached the men with their hands up as well as the girls behind them. This was little they could do… or was there?

"Follow my lead." Kouji whispered to the other three as he got close enough to Melvin and his gun.

Melvin and Brock eyed the four teens with each step they took.

"Alright now we can-"

With a swift kick, Kouji knocked Melvin's gun out of his hand. It went sprawling to the side, leaving the grown bearded bandit exposed. Kouji gave him a final roundhouse kick to the face, sending him flat on his face.

"HEY!" Brock lunged after the bandana twin, but Kouichi intercepted. He gave him a strong kick to the crotch, sending the man on his knees, crying in anguish.

With this narrow opportunity, the pair of twins took off as far away as they could.

"Hey… come back!" Melvin cried, staggering to his feet.

Brock arose to his feet as well but it was much slower and painful. "I get no respect… I get no respect at all."

"That was a nice move you pulled back there." Victoria complimented Kouji and his valiant act of bravery.

"Hey what about me?" Kouichi whined.

The girls ignored him as usual.

-x-x-x-

JP and Tommy walked down a lonely path to one of the most anticipated roller coaster rides of the day.

"Ah man I can't wait to ride the Run Away Freight Train!" Tommy boasted as he clenched his fist with excitement.

"Yeah, I can't wait either. Wheeeeeew." JP said, sounding as lethargic as a morning drug addict. The sound of commotions grabbed JP's attention.

In the near distance, JP noticed a figure of young man carrying something over his shoulder. Behind him, a trail of elephants chased after him. The boy looked vaguely familiar with his goggled hat.

"What the?" JP paused, "Could that be-"

With the boy carrying a female across his shoulders, he screamed at the top of his lungs.

Both JP and Tommy spun around to run away from the stampede. Halted in their tracks, they saw another group of people. Four teens (two male, two female) came running in their direction while being chased by two grown men from behind.

As the three groups merged towards each other, they began to recognize the other.

"JP?"

"Tommy?"

"Kouji?"

"Kouichi?"

"Takuya?"

"Zoe?"

Everyone recognized one another just before they collided with each other. Bodies fell to the floor and eyes.

"I don't believe it!" Kouichi laughed.

"Boy are we glad to see you!" Tommy said, with gladness in his voice.

"I thought you guys were kidnapped?" Zoe asked.

"We were but then we escaped." Kouji answered the blonde.

Takuya looked at everyone while he adjusted his red cap and goggles. "I can't believe we actually found each other, here of all places."

"Yeah what are the odds-" JP flinched seeing Zoe on top of Takuya's lap.

Zoe didn't notice it either until JP pointed it out, thus making her blush furiously as she slapped Takuya across the face for no apparent reason.

"Hey what was that for?" Takuya rubbed his wounded cheek. It was JP's turn to wreak havoc on the goggle boy as he grabbed him by the shirt collar.

"What have you two been doing all this time? You leave us back at the train station, and then you go off by yourselves. I bet you were having so much fun with her, taking advantage and-"

"Guys this is not the time for this! We're being chased by elephants and felons" Kouji interrupted the feud. Even Victoria and Vanessa were confused as to what was going on.

In the meantime, Melvin screamed with Brock right behind him. "Come back here you smucks!"

"Shit!" Kouji and Kouichi cursed. Everyone leaped to their feet and took off in the similar direction towards The Runaway Freight Train.

The group of friends buckled up in a pair just as the ride began to take off. Melvin and Brock were not going to let them get away that easily as they both jumped on the ride. Throughout the whole ride, the gang was more worried about escaping the two bandits then actually enjoying the ride.

There was the first hump in the ride they had to get through before the real ride began. In this early climax, Melvin managed to get his hand around Kouichi's neck, strangling him to death.

Being the protective brother he was, Kouji turned to his brother's aid and punched the crook several times in the face till he let go.

With an exhilarating speed, the roller coaster flew down the steep slope, almost as if it were free falling. The screams of kids and adults could be heard from the spectators down below.

The ride suddenly made a violent left turn sending everyone to the right of his or her seats. The ride shifted again to the right, causing everyone to fall left this time. This went on through the majority of the ride until it approached the centripetal circle.

"Oh SHIT! THIS IS NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR!" JP screamed and wailed as the carts went through the loop like a shuttle in orbit. This was the last time JP would ever ride a roller coaster again.

As the ride slowly stopped at the end of its term, the passengers got off with a slight dizziness, not knowing where they were going.

"Why is the ground moving?" Tommy wobbled all over the place as well as the gang.

"Why are _we_ moving?" Takuya questioned. His brain was scrambled as well.

The sound of Melvin and Brock staggering behind them reminded them to run for their lives.

It was do or die at this point. Not knowing how they were going to get rid of the crooks, all they had was the hope of buying time till Detective Peterson and the police will come to their rescue.

As the gang raced down the streets of the carnival, Kouji faced takuya to ask him a question.

"So how long are we going to keep running from these guys?"

"What are you suggesting?"

Kouichi anwered,"We could team up on them. There's only two of them and… eight of us."

"Eight?" Takuya echoed.

Takuya glanced over at the twin females running along side them.

"Who are you guys."

"We're with them." The girls pointed at Kouji and Kouichi. This was the first time he noticed them. "Oh… welcome."

Suddenly there was a loud beeping sound. While they were chatting, Melvin and Brock jumped into a bulldozer that just so happened to be parked nearby. The group of teens had to run for their lives as the mechanical monster charged towards them.

"Everyone separate!" Takuya shouted.

The gang scattered like roaches, leaving Tommy all by himself to decide which way to go. With no other option he ran for his life… in a straight line (you know how tv characters always run in a straight line, trying to out run whatever it is that's chasing them… idiots just move to the side).

The little boy ran until he inevitably tripped over his own shoe lace. With dread and malicious horror in his eyes, he watched as the bulldozer continued towards him. In a matter of seconds he would be flat as a pancake.

"Tommy!" Everyone shouted as if their words could save him.

Fortunately, to everyone's surprise, one of the stray elephants rammed into the bulldozer sending the two crooks to the dusty ground. By now Melvin and Brock had gone through tremendous torcher from being beat up by Kouji and Kouichi to recently being knocked out by an elephant.

"I swear when I get my hands you..." The bearded felon slowly rose to his feet, surprised by a group of police uniforms standing in his way.

"FREEZE!" the police unit shouted as car siren went off, "PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!"

"Damn." Melvin cursed as he slowly raised his hands in the air, disgruntled by the outcome of things. Brock rose to his feet as well, dumfounded by what just happened.

"Yo Melvin. Where did all these cops come from?"

Melvin gave him a grave look. "Sheaaad up!"

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**A/N: **One more chapter and it's all over. Yippee! I swear I spent a year writing this, and I don't even remember how it started HAAAAAA!


	26. Chapter 26

**An Epiphany Worth Understanding**

"You'll never take us alive!" Melvin struggled with the officer handcuffing him.

"I swear I was being forced to follow him." Brock cowardly threw his partner under the bus, hoping to get away, Scott free (who is Scott?).

"You liar!" Melvin kicked the tall ex-partner. None of there actions was getting them out of custody any time soon.

"Well. Well. If it isn't you, Melvin."

Det. Peterson approached the familiar convict as he took his shades off to get a better look. One cue, his blond locks blew in the wind as well as his blue eyes twinkling in the sunlight.

Zoe stood by the side, completely swooned.

"Jones? How'd you find me?" Melvin was amazed to see the detective. They had a history with each other. Jones spent the past five years tracking him down, only to come up short.

Takuya and the rest of the gang ran up to the two to understand what was going on, for their brains were running in circles trying to piece things together.

"Wait, you know him?" Takuya asked the detective.

"Sure I do. I use to chase this guy several times, always on the fringes of the law, him and his buddy… I forget the name."

"It's Brock! Sheesh what's hard about memorizing dat?" Brock scowled, "I swear I get no respect at all."

"And to answer your question, Melvin. I've been getting tips from these guys on your whereabouts. I heard you were trying to kidnap some twins," The detective turned his attention towards Kouji and Kouichi, "Would that be you two?"

"Yeah." The twin's answered.

"I see…" Peterson looked back at the two felons, "Well take 'em away boys. It's a longs way where they'll be going."

Melvin growled under his breath. "This won't be the last of me! You hear! I won't go down! NOT LIKE THIS!"

Brock shamefully walked beside him with his head hung low.

Suddenly, as the police officers were about to take the criminals away, a black Cadillac limo pulled up to the scene.

It came to a halt as the driver emerged from the vehicle to open the back door. Out stepped the sign of a prestigious built man dressed in a white casino suit and a black vest underneath. His black facial hair was well groomed as well as his long hair, strapped into a ponytail. His stern coal eyes were covered by his stylish shades.

"Boss?" Brock and Melvin said. It turns out he was the "Boss" they were referring to this whole time, and they were surprised to see him.

"What the hell is going on here, you two?" the man said to the crooks, "I told you to bring back my twin…"the prestigious man glanced over at the group of kids and locked eyes with Victoria and Vanessa.

"Victoria! Vanessa!" he rushed over to them and they did the same as they embraced him.

"Dad!" they both exclaimed, with relief.

"DAD?" The rest of the gang, especially Kouji and Kouichi, where confused as ever as if they found themselves in a staged prank scene.

Both of the girls hugged their father tight as ever, not wanting to let go.

"You had me worried!" the man said, tears nearly filling his eyes.

"You were actually worried about us?" Vanessa asked. She never expected to hear those words from her father.

Their father smirked as a tear stroked his cheek. "Of course."

The three gazed at each other as if they were the only ones in the world.

"Hello! Can someone please explain to us what is going on?" Kouichi demanded. Kouji stood next to him with his arms folded, defiantly.

Melvin looked at the girls, then at his Boss then at the twin boys. "So you mean these were the twins you were talking about?"

"Yes! Who else could there have been?"

Brock stood next to Melvin whistling a simple tune while his eyes wandered around him.

"But I thought… well actually… oops"

Kouji's mind was busy trying to solve the whole thing. "So you mean they were the ones you were looking for? No us?" The bandana boy pointed at the twin sisters.

"Now it's starting to make sense!" Kouichi snapped his fingers, realizing what may have happened. He then pointed at the casino-suited man, "You sent these goons looking for your daughters yet somehow they wound up capturing us… why?"

Everyone was staring at each other hoping some clarification of the whole situation would fathom.

The man in the white suit looked at everyone, "All I wanted was to find my daughters…"

(And now, how we got to where we are now…)

It was the night before JP and the gang decided to go to Cedar Valley to meet his grandma (for some tickets). The night was dark and dreary and not a lot of action was going on except for a party that took place in another part of the city (dun dun dun).

It was after midnight and two girls ran from a partying building to a cougar blue Cadillac XLR. The two girls were in fact twins, Victoria and Vanessa.

"I hope this was a good idea!" Vanessa joked, feeling the thrill of excitement.

"Trust me. It was." Victoria replied as they both got in the expensive car that was given to them. Victoria started the car and headed towards their home where they believed there father was sleeping.

Their dad was a prominent casino owner and worked many shifts, so for the most part he was probably to tired to be aware of the girls whereabouts. He was a single parent ever since the death of his beloved wife and times have been tough, raising a pair of identical daughters who could be so rebellious. He was extremely tough on them, giving them impossible guidelines to live by just so that he wouldn't have to put up with them all the time.

The girls' curfew was at 11:30… pm. And that was only on a good night he felt like allowing them to go out.

The girls drove home to a mansion as silently as possible knowing that there were guards on the lookout for anything peculiar.

The pair of daughters knew the whole blue print of their landscape like the back of their hands. They knew exactly were to hide and how to get inside to their rooms without anyone noticing.

They jumped the gate after parking their car and hid in the bushes, waiting for the patrol officer to walk by. After that, they rushed to the side of the building and climbed a rope they had left for their return. The rope led to the room on the third floor. They finally entered through the window of their room, knowing they made it safely… until the lights came on by themselves.

"And where have you two been?" A man in a maroon robe with a pipe in his mouth asked the two girls. It was their father, Anthony Leaphorn. His stern face could tell the story of how worried he was and yet how disappointed.

"Dad, I can explain!" Vanessa stepped forward on the behalf of her sister. Victoria was known for getting both of them into serious trouble.

"No need to. Something tells me you two were at that party I forbid you to go!"

"But Dad…"

"Silence! You deliberately disobeyed me… the both of you."

"Would you just let us have fun for once?" Victoria lashed out.

"Have fun? Have fun?" the man echoed himself, "Have you any idea what this world can be like? I can't let you out of my sight or else something bad could happen to you all."

"Look at us! Nothing has." Victoria retorted. She had a point.

Disgruntled by the situation and too tired to deal with anything serious at the moment, he stepped towards the door to leave.

"I want you two to stay in your rooms until I figure what to do with you!" the man said, more serious than he had ever sounded before.

Both girls found it unfair of the man to be so ruling with an iron fist, disregarding their input or feelings.

"I swear ever since mom died you've been a complete jerk!" Victoria lashed out again. This time even Vanessa was shocked, but her sister was right.

"I'm a jerk, eh? Well then as of now you two are grounded until I know what to do with you all."

He took their keys to their car as well as the rest of their privileges. He left the room in a cold-hearted heartbeat, never to speak to them again until the morning.

It was that night the girls knew they had to do something… something drastic.

-x-x-x-

As daybreak occurred, Anthony walked into the girl's room to address to them about last night. He was still angry with them, but figured he needed to talk to them with a level head.

He noticed their beds were filled with dummies (something he has become accustomed to over the years). He searched the house high and low, only to realize the girls were missing. He knew in his heart of hearts that the girls had ran away from home, and could be in grave danger. He didn't mean for things to get to this gruesome level. He called their cell phones several times to get a hold of them, but they wouldn't answer.

With this knowledge he did what any other rational thinking person would do. NO he did not call the police to file a report…he called a pair of freelance bounty hunters.

-x-x-x-

"So you are the expert bounty hunters?" Anthony asked the two men that stepped into his office. It was Melvin and Brock, standing side by side dressed in black trench coats complimented with fervent facial expressions.

"Why yes… yes we are."

"Good… I need you to find some people who mean dearly to me…" he brought out his cliché silver briefcase and plopped it on the table. He opened it, showing the men a wad of cash. It was over $100,000.

"As I promised…" Anthony referred to the payment money for the bounty men's services.

Melvin wolf whistled while Brock eyed the cash like cotton candy.

"Now listen up because you don't have much time. I placed tracers in their cellphones ever since they got them, but sooner or later they'll find out. The last signal was picked up near the Downtown Train Station." He paused to walk over to his daintily clothed draped windows of maroon and lace. Facing outside the window, as if to see the girls from a faraway distance, he beckoned a final request from the two men. "Please hurry and find them. There my twin dau…"

Melvin and Brock tuned him out by now. He sounded like all their other clients they've had before, worried to death and helpless. Little did Anthony know, but Melvin and Brock planned on back stabbing him by stealing his loved ones for a high ransom later. It's what they were known for in their years of services.

"We'll do our best Boss!" Brock said, making haste to get to work.

Anthony stopped them as he pulled out a manila folder. "And here's a portfolio of information, you'll need."

He handed it to them and they were on their way.

-x-x-x-

The two bounty hunters sat in their Cadillac, waiting their victims to show up.

"So what did the Boss say we were looking for, again?" Brock asked, golfing down a glazed donut and some dark coffee.

"You nimrod! He said to find his twin… twins… sons… or daughtahs."

"Which one?"

"Doh,I don't know. I forgot. I wasn't paying attention. I thought you would be." Melvin continued eyeing passengers through the lens of some binoculars.

"I thought you were paying attention also." Brock chugged the coffee down like water.

"Well how hard can it be? It's not like every day you see twins walking around, so we should be fine."

Melvin paid attention to the signal coming from the cellphone tracers. It slowly came closer and closer, causing the signal to beep rapidly.

"They must be on this train that's coming up." Melvin observed.

A speeding electric train screeched its brakes to a stop. Passengers got off while other got on in the busy commute.

"Keep your eyes peeled."

"Thats gotta hurt."

Melvin sighed with grief. Brock was such an idiot sometimes.

Suddenly, the trace signal went dead without warning, as passengers transferred in and out of the train.

"What the hell?" Melvin and Brock panicked after the glitch incident, "Dey must have found out about the tracers."

Brock starred at Melvin with a clueless appearance. "So now whad do we do?"

"This can't be gooid…" just as the two bickered with each other; they missed their opportunity to see the twin girls pass by as they dropped the dead cellphones in the nearby trashcan before running onto the train. But just as the girls got on, two male identical twins got off the train.

The boys caught Melvin's eye and his binoculars. An epiphany struck him. They must have been the one's Anthony was referring to, no doubt he thought.

"Quick! dere they are. Lets get 'em before dey get away."

"Are you sure dats them?"

"OFCOURSE I'M SURE!"

The two men prepared their guns and concealed them in their trench coats. They also pulled out two joker masks, from the Batman movie, and placed them on as they stocked the two teenaged twins heading towards the bathroom.

They stood outside ready to barge in and capture their targets…

(The present day…)

"And so that's how we got here…" Melvin said, filling in the void as to how this whole story came about.

"You mean to tell me you've been spending the past few days chasing two innocent boys that aren't even mine."

"Oops…" Melvin shrugged.

Everyone nearly fainted

"What happened to the portfolio I gave you?"

"What portfolio?"

"The one that contained all the important information you need to know about MY DAUGHTERS!"

"Oh… that portfolio…" Melvin realized what the man was talking about.

"We lost it." Brock bluntly replied, sounding dumber than ever.

Everyone palmed their face and slapped their foreheads.

"Take 'em away, officer!" Anthony ordered, frustrated than ever. The police did so.

"No! Wait boss! We're sorry!"

"Please bail us out!"

Peterson walked up next to Anthony to inform him of further information.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. These guys are known for taking their prisoners hostage for ransom."

"Really?"

Peterson placed his hand on the mans shoulder and nodded his head as if to say, "I'm afraid so."

Mr. Leaphorn's blood boiled, to think he would have been backstabbed had things turned out differently.

"Det. Peterson." Mr. Leaphorn said.

"Yes?"

"Make sure they stay locked up for a long time… a very long time."

"I sure will." The detective replied as he saluted him off.

With that Peterson left Anthony to make his way towards the boys that were being chased all this time.

"I'm sorry for having you go through all this. Essentially its pretty much my fault you guys were running for your lives."

"Oh no problem Mr. Leaphorn." Kouchi replied in a positive tone.

"Yes, the important thing is that everyone is safe." Kouji added.

"Your right. Over these past few days… I found out what matters more to me in life, and I wouldn't trade them in the world for anything." The man looked at his daughters with a new sense of gratitude and responsibility. He then immediately pulled out a checkbook. "So how much?"

"Excuse me?" the twins were shocked.

"How much do I owe you?"

"Nothing."

"Seriously, I put you guys through a lot. And I need to thank you guys for looking out for my daughters."

Kouichi shook his head with his hand held out to stop him. "Seriously keep your money. It would do us no good."

"H-hey Mr. Leaphorn!" Takuya interrupted the scene as he placed his arms around the twins' shoulders, " You see these guys? I taught them everything they know when it comes to life and not being selfish…"

"Like your not being selfish right now?" Kouji saw through Takuya's plans like a transparent dirty window.

"H-hey, all I'm saying is… give the money to me so I can use it towards charity for young men like these." The goggle boy had this all played out in his brain.

Anthony knew the kid was lying but went ahead and wrote a check for $10,000 and gave it to the twins.

"Gee, thanks." Kouichi sounded grateful, despite he and Kouji denied the offer.

"No problem… and here's my card if you ever want to stop by one of my casinos." He hand him one of his personal cards with his information on it in gold print.

"_Leaphorn Casinos Royal"_

"Thanks!"

The man turned around a headed back towards the limo and his daughters that were waiting. Before he left with them, they had one more word to speak to the male twins.

"Well I guess this is good bye." Vanessa said towards the twins.

"Sorry for putting you through all this." Victoria sounded genuinely sincere.

"Are you kidding? I'd… We'd do it again if we had to." Kouichi grabbed his brother by the neck, playfully.

"No we wouldn't" Kouji spat out.

The girls giggled at the twins. Things were just getting good between the four of them.

Victoria gazed at the young men, "I guess we should catch up sometime when we can."

"Yes indeed." Kouji replied.

Vanessa stepped closer to Kouichi and Victoria did the same with Kouji. At the same time in a simultaneous second, they pecked the cheeks of their respected twin lovers.

Both boys looked surprised, especially Kouji, as their cheeks turned red as roses.

With a wave of good-bye, the girls walked off to their dad's limo and drove off.

The rest of the gang watched what took place with mischievous admiration. The guys cooed and awed, making the twin blush even more.

"Oh, shut up!" Kouji shot back at the group.

It was nice for the whole gang to be finally back together. The missed each other so much.

As Detective Peterson and his Police comrade detained Melvin and Brock, Takuya snuck next to Zoe without her knowing.

"You know Zoe. While this atmosphere of emotions is going around… I should just go ahead and say."

"Sssssssh…!" Zoe placed her finger against her pink lips. She then placed it on Takuya's, shunning the boy from speaking.

"No need to say anything. I already know."

The boy stared back at her, wide eye.

"I kinda… like you too." The girl held her hands behind her back as she coyly looked away from the brunette.

"Um… actually I was going to say. I was relieved we all made it here together."

Zoe's mouth dropped about a hundred feet with her blank expression. She revealed her feelings for the boy for nothing, since she assumed he had feeling for her.

"Ha! Just kidding…hehehe eeehehe.." the boy laughed nervously.

"Oh…" the girl slapped him across the arm for making her feel embarrassed.

The boy rubbed the injured area as he faced away from her. "So you like me, eh?"

The girl shyly nodded with her rosey cheeks flustering.

"I knew it all along!" the boy accused.

"What?"

"That explains all the yelling and abusing towards me!"

"Oh please, that was because you deserved it for being a dumbass."

"Mmhmm…" the boy eyed her with narrowing eyes of scrutiny.

"Shut up Takuya. Just shut up"

The boy did just that as he looked away from her, facing the crime scene. With a gentle touch, he felt Zoe's fingers enlace into his hands. He had to admit, it took him off guard for a second, but welcomed it with… an open arm. She then snuggled closer to him, placing her head on his sturdy shoulder. A subtle connection sealed between the two.

"And what the hell is this?" JP said as he turned around to the both of them. He was shocked and appalled.

"Shut up, JP. You're just jealous." Takuya joked.

"You damn right I am!" JP threw a fit. "Kouji and Kouichi found beautiful girls that have a rich troubled father. You and Zoe had an adventure of your own, while you ended up liking each other, but me? What do I get? Nothing! Absolutely NOTHING!"

He then looked up to the heavens cursed the very sky. "CURSE YOU FANFIC WRITER BY THE NAME OF VALIANTONE!"

Everyone looked at him as if he had six severed heads.

"Well that about does it." Detective Jones Peterson talked to the young ones one last time before he headed out back to headquarters.

Zoe laid eyes upon him one last time, taking it all in. At least she had Takuya she thought.

"Well, I have you guys to thank for capturing two of our most wanted criminals."

"No problem," Takuya replied. The rest of the group nodded their head with appreciation.

"Well take care now, and stay out of trouble…" the detective was about to leave them just before he was glomped by the young and emotional Zoe.

"Please don't go Detective! I want you! I NEED you!"

The girl held the detective captive. Even his speech was impeded. "I.. uhm…"

Takuya grabbed and pulled her away from the investigator.

"Uh…sorry about that," Takuya apologized on behalf of the crazy blond girl. The girl looked away as if nothing happened. She didn't know what came over her.

Now that Det. Peterson was free, he dusted himself off. "Like I was saying, you kids take care now."

Zoe brought her self to ask him one last question. "Will we ever hear from you again?"

"That my friends…" he placed his sunglasses on, dramatically, "Is up to the future."

(YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAGH! *Cue CSI Miami Theme Song*)

The officer walked off in a dramatic slow-mo fashion towards his car and drove off into the distance, perhaps never to be seen or heard from again.

"That guys sure knows how to make an exit." JP said under his breath, "And I don't even know that guy…"

(**Ending Song:** We Are One Tonight by Switchfoot)

It was evening and the sun would set at any minute, as the guys rallied around each other.

"Well now that we finally made it here, together, let's go FINALLY see JP's grandma…"

"AND GET THOSE TICKETS!" Tommy spontaneously, shouted.

Everyone chuckled then jumped in the air unanimously, as they shouted, "YEAH!" and high fived each other like a corny 1990's teen movie. (*Sigh* the good times)

**THE END**

**A/N: **And that does it… good freakin riddens. I'm done with this yearlong taking story.


	27. Epilogue

**To Grandmother's House We Go… Oh NO!**

Takuya, Kouji, Zoe, JP, Tommy, and Kouichi were walking down the street of JP's grandma's neighborhood. The twins were side by side, Tommy was on JP's back and Takuya carried Zoe in his arms while she clung to him. She was the most exhausted and needed someone to carry her.

"Since when did you two become such lover birds?" JP asked. His stomach revolted just seeing the two so close together.

"We're not love birds!" Both Takuya and Zoe shouted at the same time, but they knew better than to lie and bury their true feelings from the rest of the gang.

"Oh… sure your not." JP teased.

Zoe looked away, cheeks burning red.

The gang was almost near their destination as they strolled down the fastidious area. The cedar trees lined the sidewalks of the neighborhood for miles, and the grass of each yard was trimmed down to the same height. There was no such thing as pollution or litter in the area. It was if the sun shined down on the neighborhood, 24/7.

"Wow, I can't believe I'm holding a check for a ten thousand dollars in _my _hand." Kouichi held the valuable piece of paper in their air, examining it by every detail. The whole time he was ignoring the others and their discussion.

"Don't you mean our money?" Kouji reminded his brother, just in case he already developed money amnesia.

"Yeah… what ever."

Kouji looked at the casino business card that Mr. Leaphorn had given him. "It's clever of him to give us $10,000 then turn around and hand us his business card to his casino."

"I know right…" Kouichi replied, still eyeing the check.

The gang reminisced over the past few days ever since they accidentally separated. It had been so long and now they were finally reunited in one piece, with little or no harm done.

Kouichi finally placed the check in his pocket. "Ever since we left that train to go to the restroom, our lives have changed."

"Yeah, I remember… being abducted and all." Kouji recalled the event as if they just happened.

"Don't remind us. We thought we were going to lose you guys for good." Zoe said.

The twins faced the girl as well as the rest of the group, "You almost did."

The words flowed out their mouths, stinging the hearts of their friends. The reality of the situation sunk in.

"So what happened? How'd did you guys escape?" Tommy wondered.

"Well we actually outsmarted them and escaped their car..." Kouji answered.

The others listened intently as the twins went on about their great escape story, detail by detail.

"And what happened to you guys?" Kouji asked about Takuya's and Zoe's journey together.

"Oh… well… we just found our own path to Cedar Valley, basically." Zoe shortly answered.

Takuya felt nervous with that answer and figured he had added his own details. "Yeah… nothing weird went on between us the whole time or anything."

Kouji and the rest of guys eyed the couple with scrutiny. They knew they were hiding something, in fact, a whole lot.

Both Takuya and Zoe feigned a surprised expression. "What?"

Kouji discontinued the eyes of disbelief and faced where he was going, "Nothing…nothing at all."

Takuya and Zoe glanced back at each other before turning slightly red.

"Well guys! We're here!" JP announced loudly. He dropped Tommy from his back and raced toward the front step. He finally could not wait to get those tickets… and see his grandma.

Tommy picked himself off the ground and dusted his body.

"Why'd you drop me?" he whined.

"I didn't drop you. I let you go."

The older male of the group then faced the door and hovered his knuckles. He was afraid to knock since it's been several years since he last visited his grandma.

"Dude, are you going to knock or what?" Takuya asked.

"Yeah man, lets get this over with." Kouji also was inpatient.

JP finally knocked the door and waited for a long time for someone to answer the door. After a couple of minute, the door knob turned slightly as well as a few clicks from the lock. The door finally opened and behind it was an elderly lady who was still healthy enough to stand on her two feet without support.

"OH MY DEAR JP! You finally came to visit me." She instantly hugged the her large grand child as he did the same.

"I see you also brought your friends. How nice of you."

The rest of JP's friends, waved at the women as a greeting.

"So come on in and have a seat!"

The gang did as they were asked while JP mustered up the courage to ask his grandmother for main thing reason why he came here for.

"Uh so… grandma… do you still have those tickets?"

She blankly stared at the grandson as if he asked her if she had a million dollars.

"Um what are you talking about, sonny?"

"I mean _the_ _tickets_. The tickets to the concert to see my favorite band."

She still looked at her grandson with an empty expression until she figured out what he was referring to.

"Ooooh _those_ tickets, haha!" she giggled a little. "Eeehehehee… eheheheheha."

JP slightly chuckled himself and so did everyone else.

"Ahahahahaaa… JP, my grandson… sorry to burst your bubble, but…"

"BUT WHAT- I mean… but what?"

"I lied about the tickets."

JP's face went stone cold without life or expression.

"I had a feeling you would come if I had an incentive since you usually don't come when I ask you to."

"Wait so you mean there were no tickets in the first place?" Kouji jolted out of his seat while the lady calmly shook her head.

Everyone, especially Kouji who didn't want to come in the first place, gave the most viscous eyes of daggers towards JP than they ever had before. He was dead meat as they said.

"But hey at least you're here now!" JP's grandma pointed everyone to the bright side, "Now who wants some green tea?"

Normally the gang would stay mad at JP until he paid for all the damage that was caused, but they figured to go ahead and let it slide. After all, they were given $10,000 dollars by Mr. Leaphorn… who accidentally forgot to sign the check…

**THE END (Whomp Whomp Wowowowowowooo)**

**A/N: **And that is the full conclusion of how this cookie crumbles. Poor JP. Just wait titll this is all over and when he gets back home with the guys.

Well I hope and believed you enjoyed this story for the most part. I admit the story was a bit choppy at most points but I hope you had a good time enjoying the adventures of the Frontier Gang. I do apologize for not making this a complete Takumi Oriented story as I planed it but I'm sure the conclusion between the two will suffice. I look forward to hearing from you guys in my next and last work on fanficition… "A Day In the Life of a Digi-destined!" which I'm working on right now…


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